


Secrets

by Torun



Category: The Hobbit (Jackson Movies), The Hobbit - All Media Types, The Hobbit - J. R. R. Tolkien
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Everybody Lives, Family Drama, Family Secrets, London, Multi, Organized Crime, Romance, Violence, pansexual male character
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-06
Updated: 2016-02-15
Packaged: 2018-05-12 06:00:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 11
Words: 41,719
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5655040
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Torun/pseuds/Torun
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tauriel starts her life over and finds a bedsit and a barista job in Camden, unaware of that it puts her in the middle of the Durin family, an Irish Mafia family. When a Mafia war is rekindled between the Durin family in north London and their old antagonists south of the Thames, she's pulled into the heart of it. Kiliel with a twist.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Helshades](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=Helshades).



> ~~I haven't been able to find a beta for this story, so bear with me here. My excuse for any mistakes is that English isn't my native language. If any grammar Nazi out there (preferably a British one) feel inclined to help me out, I'd be very grateful.~~ English is still not my native language, but a beta has been found.
> 
> I would never have written this story if not for the tumblogger Helshades' sharp pen (or keyboard). In July 2015 she listed the fic tropes she loves to hate and after a short back and forth re-blogging, I was suspected of being a closet coffeeshop-o-holic. Naturally I took this as a challenge – to write a coffeeshop AU just for Helshades! This is tongue-in-cheek, I'll admit that. At the same time it wouldn't be me if I didn't take the matter seriously once I started to write. There are all sorts of things in here that Ms Hels have issues with. Unfortunately this is T-rated though so no poor sex scenes. Even I have limits.
> 
> If we're to sober up for a while I would like to say something about the plot. Yes, shockingly there's a plot too, not just a love story. For quite some time I have researched the London underworld, in particular the Irish Mafia, because at some point I hope to write an original story inspired by their history. I have used the research I have already done to write this and in case anyone is wondering it's the Adams family that is the inspiration for the Durins.
> 
> Happy reading!

_Camden, London_

_April 2015_

Dis opened the door to the Georgian semi-detached house she had lived in since the early 1990s and took in the young woman on the doorstep. She was just above average height, slender without looking emaciated, but the most eye-catching thing about her was her red wavy hair, cut pixie short. Though casually dressed, Dis immediately spotted that she wasn't wearing Marks & Spencer but designer prêt-à-porter, in this case DKNY.

The standard of clothing didn't surprise her. The moment the young woman had introduced herself when she had called, Dis had known who she was. What surprised her was that the young woman was looking for something as feeble as a bedsit, not to mention that she was in Camden searching for one.

"I'm seeking a Mrs. Whelan," the young woman said politely, without any hint of cockney in her speech, and Dis instantly recognised the voice. "I'm here about a bedsit?"

"Well, that would be me," Dis replied with a smile. "But no one calls me Mrs. Whelan. Dis will suffice."

The redhead extended her right hand, returning the smile, and they shook hands. "I'm Tauriel Ward. And please call me Tauriel."

Dis showed her around after having let her inside, ending the tour with the room in question, a decent-sized one by London standards on the top floor, which once had been an attic. These days it was a smart bedsit conversion with one large and two smaller dormers letting in plenty of light.

Tauriel took a turn, looking at everything from the kitchenette to the view. She stood by the large dormer facing the back gardens for a moment and then she opened the window, leaning on the frame while she studied the surroundings.

"My younger son used to have this room and he often climbed out the window to sit on the roof," Dis said with a small smile.

Tauriel closed the window with a nod. "I can see why. Not too difficult to do and the roof is rather flat. It's a nice view." She turned around and smiled.

"It is, but roof surfing is hard on a mother's nerves."

"I hope nothing happened." Tauriel's smile faded.

Dis chuckled. "Well, once my elder lad closed the window to teach his brother a lesson. Or so he claimed anyway. Fortunately our neighbours had left one of their windows open so he let himself in there, gave them a minor heart attack, and then he came padding through the front door in his socks."

"Did he stop after that?"

"No. The lads had a scuffle and then he continued with this habit."

Tauriel laughed and shook her head.

"Well, this is it." Dis looked around the room. "The kitchenette is obviously not meant for more advanced cooking. But being on the top floor it's nice not to have to run down the stairs for a glass of water, some tea, or to warm something simple to eat."

Tauriel nodded and smiled. "I like it."

"Everything but Council Tax is included, and the previous tenant just moved out, so it's available now."

"It would suit me," Tauriel said and her smile dimmed. "Things are a bit chaotic at the moment and I really need a place to stay."

"Well then, how about taking a look at the contract?"

Tauriel quickly glanced at the watch on her wrist.

Dis paused for a beat. "You have another appointment? I have the contract ready so it's just for you to read through the terms and conditions and sign it."

With a smile Tauriel shook her head. "No it's fine, I'm not running late."

"But there's no point in me offering you some tea." Dis smiled as Tauriel shook her head with an apologetic expression.

"Well, let's go downstairs and take care of the formalities then!" Dis said and led the way down the stairs.

Tauriel was nothing if not efficient and apparently also used to skimming fine print. Ten minutes later she signed the contract, transferred the money to Dis' account, and left with the keys to her new home.

Dis stood looking at the signature on the contract for a moment before filing it away. She couldn't help wondering why the daughter to Thranduil Ward was showing up in Camden, which was, aside from Clapham, the last place in London a Ward would go. But being a patient person, she was confident she'd find out soon enough.

o.o.o

The day after, Tauriel moved in. She didn't bring much – half a dozen boxes holding some books, important papers and memorabilia, a few of bags with clothes and her laptop, a very brightly coloured Berber rug, a couple of lamps, and a large computer flat screen. Even if she didn't move in with boxes overflowing with accumulated possessions, Dis ruled out a domestic abuse situation. It was a rushed move, certainly, but not desperate. She'd had enough time to pick out the essentials with care. The rest was most likely put in storage somewhere.

Over the course of the coming days Dis took note of what Tauriel was doing and quickly realised the young woman was on a desperate hunt for a job, any job, and fast. It naturally raised even more questions, but she contained them and gave her eldest son a call instead. When a weary looking Tauriel came home after what seemed like another unsuccessful day, Dis slipped her a note with a telephone number.

"His name is Fili and he's looking for staff. He's almost always looking for people, but right now they need barista staff for the café," Dis explained. "It's called 37 and it's up by the canal. Large establishment. There's a restaurant on two levels with function rooms, night club in the cellar, and a delicatessen and a café on ground level."

Tauriel looked at the note and then back up at Dis. "How...?"

"Oh, I couldn't help noticing you're looking for something and I know Fili. He's a local," Dis replied, deliberately omitting why she knew him. She hadn't told Fili who Tauriel was either, nor that the young woman was a tenant. She had a hunch it was better not to.

Ten minutes later Tauriel was out through the door again and when she came home in the evening, Dis took one look at the young woman's face as she entered the kitchen and concluded it had been a good meeting.

"I'm so grateful you called him. Thank you so much!" Tauriel said and held out an elegant box of chocolate, which Dis accepted with a smile.

"I'm only glad I could help," Dis said. "Tea?"

Tauriel shook her head. "It's no small thing you did. I have some savings but I would prefer to not touch it if I can help it. It'll be a steep learning curve though, because I have _never_ done anything like this. Hopefully I won't make too much of a fool of myself."

Dis' keen eyes spotted Tauriel apprehensively tracing the edge of the worktop she was leaning her hip against. "When do you begin?" she asked.

"Believe it or not – tomorrow. I'm going to bed now because I'm supposed to be in by five." Tauriel paused briefly and smirked. "In the _morning_." They open at seven already, serving breakfast."

"I'm certain you'll do well," Dis replied jovially.

"Thank you. I hope so too." She hesitated and shook her head. "What a _place_! They must have three-hundred seats in the restaurant section, though it's really cleverly divided. You don't feel like it's that enormous. And the delicatessen and the café... It's just as large!"

Dis nodded and carefully put down the box on the worktop. "I know. I've been there a few times and it's impressive."

Tauriel sighed. "I'm terribly relieved, even if it's a bit daunting. But I'd better go upstairs. It won't help if I haven't slept properly!" She smiled and left with a determined stride.

Dis glanced at the box. Who could ever have guessed someone as stiff and arrogant as Thranduil would have such a daughter, she mused. Perhaps that was the explanation to the mystery, why Tauriel was here and prepared to work for seven pounds an hour, that father and daughter had become so at odds that the daughter felt she had to leave even if it meant a sharp decline in standard.

With a shrug Dis made herself a cup of tea and retreated to her own domain on the lower ground floor.

o.o.o

_May, 2015_

Tauriel's shift was coming to an end, finally, and she was so ready to go home.

She had to admit that the past weeks had been some of the toughest she'd ever had. Learning completely new skills, getting used to a physically demanding job and having to adjust to irregular hours sometimes made her so exhausted she wanted to cry.

She hadn't had many run-ins with her new boss, which perhaps was just as well. Rumours had it that he ruled the kitchen with an iron fist, and on occasion the chefs were a bit pale when they slunk out of the kitchen, but she had yet to see that side of him. Well, she had yet to see much at all of him.

The second manager in the café, Luka, was also the one to teach her everything she needed to know about coffee culture. Fortunately he was patient and encouraging which helped immensely. She'd lost count of the mistakes she made, but there had been progress too. Technically it wasn't that complicated. She mastered the basic skills in a couple of days, such as handling the espresso machine, the computerised cash register and the general routines. The difficult part was keeping track of everything and planning ahead, and doing it in tandem with those she worked with during a shift.

Though the café operation was quite simple in comparison to the restaurant, the amount of labour that went into it surprised her. She'd never given it much thought before. They had bakers and pantry chefs taking care of the bread, pastries, and cold dishes and the simple lunches. Sometimes they were as many as four people manning the café and there were kitchen porters cleaning and running the dish station at all times. During club nights the café underwent a transformation when it became an upper bar to the night club, with alcohol and loud music instead of coffee and pastries.

She was gradually falling into the routine, but she was still painfully aware that she had a long way to go before she with confidence could say she knew her job. It was something of a shock to her, because she had for so long been used to leading others and excelling at what she did.

One of the last tasks of the day before the evening and night staff took over was taking care of the terrace. The tables needed to be cleared of glasses, cups and plates, and the chairs stacked and chained down. It was a large space and even if the furniture was practical and not just chosen for their aesthetic qualities, it was still a daunting chore which took quite some time. The evening was cold and halfway through Tauriel regretted not fetching her jacket before she started.

Shivering and feeling red-nosed from the chilly air she hurried inside with the serving-tray she had brought along with her. When she swerved in behind the bar she almost stumbled over a crouching figure by the fridges under the worktop. Quick reflexes and some acrobatics saved her from stumbling and tipping the serving-tray over his head. Gripping the tray so hard her knuckles turned white she stopped short and stared down at him. He in turn had frozen, staring back up at her.

"I didn't see you," she blurted. "Sorry," she added and started to breathe easier.

He flashed her a wide smile. "Impressive. And thanks for not dropping that on my head." He nodded at her tray and then returned to filling the fridges with assorted bottles.

She continued to stare at him for a moment, vaguely recognising him. Yes, she had seen him before. He was one of their regular morning customers, swinging by just before nine o'clock to pick up a breakfasts takeaway. Though he was friendly with Luka, she had not realised he was in fact also working in this place.

He handled the bottles with neck-breaking speed, humming along to the background music, not sparing her another glance, and she pulled herself together and continued on to the dish rack. She emptied her tray, cleaned it up and turned to go back out to continue clearing tables, only to find her path blocked by him, leaning nonchalantly against the worktop.

"I don't think we've been properly introduced," he said and smiled, holding out his hand. She hesitated for a beat before she shook hands with him. "Kili. I come in on occasion when there's a crisis in the downstairs bar on weekends."

"Tauriel," she replied and offered a polite smile.

"I take it you're about to go home for the day, yeah?" He held on to her hand a moment too long before he let it go, and she had to refrain from arching her eyebrows at him.

"In another twenty minutes or so," she confirmed.

"I've been stocking up the alcohol, but is there anything else you need up here while I'm at it?"

"I think you're asking the wrong person," she replied coolly and scanned the bar area behind him for someone better suited, to whom she could direct him. She was both annoyed and amused when she noticed that he kept watching her with a small smile. He wasn't the least interested in what the bar staff might need for the evening, of that she was certain.

The newly-arrived shift leader, Anna, looked up and spotted them. Tauriel made a face of pathetic helplessness, hoping she'd pick up on her predicament and come over. Anna smirked in response and quietly slipped up behind Kili.

"By the look of things I say you're done here Kili," she said close to his ear, winking at Tauriel. "And aren't you sufficiently busy as it is?"

He glanced over his shoulder at her, turning on a radiant smile. "I'm always open to lending a helping hand, love."

Tauriel rolled her eyes and momentarily looked away.

Making a noise somewhere between a cough and a snort Anna replied, "I suppose there's no rest for the wicked."

Tauriel decided she didn't need to stick around for the rest of the conversation and with a firm grip on the tray she started squeezing past Kili and Anna. "Would you please excuse me?" she asked, and they obligingly inched out of her way.

With more haste than needed she moved among the tables, stacking cups and glasses on her tray. It was half-filled when she paused and shot a look back at the bar where she caught a glimpse of Kili between the coffee grinders and the espresso machine. Before he could catch her watching him, she turned away and continued filling her tray.

Kili was still firmly planted behind the bar as Tauriel returned with her clinking bounty, chatting with Anna while cleaning the espresso machine. Pretending to ignore him, she walked past him towards the dish rack where she put down her tray.

"So how does our latest recruit find this place then?" he asked casually while putting back the drip tray grate.

"Fine, I suppose," she replied, keeping her tone short. If he wanted a conversation he'd have to work a bit for it, she decided.

In the corner of her eye she caught him studying her while he polished the metal on the large machine. "You've not done this before, have you? No offence," he said apologetically, "it's just that those with little or no experience usually end up in Luka's care."

Reluctantly she gave him a sideways look and noticed a genuine curiosity, which made her pause. So he could be sincere if he wanted to. "None taken. And no, I haven't done this before." She made a face. "I suppose it's obvious I'm a bit green for other reasons than being scheduled with Luka."

His smile was friendly and warm. "Practice makes perfect. I hope you're not finding it too daunting."

"I'm getting used to it." Pausing her hands, she looked over at him and smiled slightly in return. "It's been tough though. I'll admit that. You don't know just how much work that goes into doing this before you've tried it."

He nodded sympathetically. "Yeah, it's not as easy as it looks. And people are such arses, too, sometimes, which doesn't help."

Quietly she hummed in agreement and continued pushing down the last glasses into the rack. She rinsed the dish cloth for yet another round among the tables.

"Have to say though, it's looking good. You're intent on doing a good job. Just don't burn yourself out."

She arched an eyebrow at him.

"Didn't think I would notice something like that?" He smirked. "You learn to spot the shirkers a mile away and you're not one of those." He looked at Anna with a large toothy grin, slipping back into the flirtatious act. "There. All clean and shiny, just for you."

She turned towards him, ignoring the machine, and demonstratively shielded her eyes. "Oh, I'm blinded," she cooed.

With a chuckle he stepped around Tauriel and picked up the dish rack. "What would my ego be without you?"

"Incredibly inflated, making you insufferable?" Anna suggested with a smile.

"I'm lucky to have you grounding me then." With a wink he left, heading for the dish station with the rack.

"You think he'll come back with an empty one?" Tauriel asked Anna as she watched him disappear through the back door. Anna snorted and then sighed.

"Most likely not." She gave Tauriel a measured look. "Why don't you go and pick one up? I can finish out here."

Tauriel nodded and dumped the serving-tray and dishcloth on the counter as she steered towards the back regions.

"Make that two!" Anna called out after her, and Tauriel half-turned and gave a nod.

When she approached the dish station she spotted Kili having a lively conversation with one of the kitchen porters. She slowed her stride and took a good look at him, something she hadn't actually done before.

He had picked up the basic hipster bloke-behind-the-bar look, perfected with the semi-long dark brown hair in a man bun and a three-day-stubble, but it wasn't really a dedicated look with carefully considered details such as the proper tattoos and accessories. The way he filled out the shirt and fashionably showed off his arms made it obvious that he was a card holder at some gym, suggesting a significant dose of vanity. But he also had a genuine smile and, the terrible innuendoes he had traded with Anna aside, he seemed decent and not unintelligent.

He caught sight of her and his eyebrows shot up. "Don't tell me Anna thought I'd forget to bring an empty rack back to you!"

"She did," Tauriel confirmed breezily.

"Oh ye of little faith!" he lamented and threw up his hands.

"Don't involve me in this. I'm not the faithless one," she chirped and picked up two empty racks. For a moment she considered him and then decided to tease him slightly, just for the fun of it. "Look at it this way: when you're not burdened with the arduous task of bringing us a rack, you have more time to... oh I don't know, work on the repertoire of puns and innuendos?" She smiled to take the edge off the gibe.

"I can multi-task! And I have to try them on someone, after all." He grinned at her while putting his hands on his hips, apparently not taking offence.

She shrugged lightly. "I'd expect you cool bar blokes to have a large enough audience down in the club."

He coughed a laugh and momentarily glanced away. "The cool bar blokes wouldn't mind a more intimate setting though," he said when his eyes was back on her.

Her unflappable façade nearly cracked. The kitchen porter snorted and didn't bother to hide it either.

"Keep working on that act and I might just book you in," she returned lightly. The kitchen porter started snickering and Kili pursed his lips in a vain attempt to not join in. With a slight nod she headed back towards the café.

"See you on Monday morning!" he called out after her.

She twirled around and shook her head, slowly backing away. "Sorry. I'm not serving the cool bar blokes any breakfast until Tuesday."

"Looking forward to Tuesday then!" he said with a grin.

Despite her best efforts, Tauriel couldn't quite hold back a small smile as she left the room.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the comments and kudos! I really appreciate it!

_May, 2015_

It was early, only seven o'clock in the morning, but Tauriel had, as usual, since this was an early shift, been in since five making the preparations for breakfast. It was going to be a fine day, perfect to attract people to the neighbourhood, so they could look forward to a fairly busy day. Due to its proximity to the Tube station there would be a steady stream of people long before the tourists invaded, picking up a takeaway or sitting down for a brief breakfast before rushing off to wherever they commuted every day.

Through the floor-to-ceiling windows she saw Luka watering the plants on the terrace facing the street. They were rather large citrus, olive, and bay leaf trees in huge containers, adding to the Ibiza-style Mediterranean look of the terrace. While nice to look at, they needed a lot of water when the weather was fair, which meant that every morning they had to haul out the hose and devote at least half an hour to watering plants.

Absently she paused and watched him for a short while. Luka was fairly secretive, but she knew he was from Serbia, though he had lived in London for many years. He was older than she was, in the second half of his thirties, but there was no sign of grey in his well-groomed, short, dark-brown hair. Whether that was due to a bit of dye or not she could not tell, but she suspected he was vain enough to resort to such measures. He was of average height, on the wiry side, and had fairly classic features, though his nose was slightly long. At some point he had broken it and while it wasn't very obvious, it broke up the symmetry ever so slightly.

Like a dancer he was very precise and economical in his movements when he was working and he was surprisingly strong. By now she had begun to understand that this job demanded quite a lot physically, so she suspected that he too had a gym membership card hidden in his card holder, though he didn't flash the result as blatantly as other people she knew.

With a sigh she went back to stacking cups onto the espresso machine. She expected to be utterly exhausted when the shift was over in the evening. This was the third day on which she worked a gruelling fourteen hours; she would be on until eight in the evening, with only two half-hour breaks. Alas! The day after, Friday, she would only have a short afternoon shift before her anticipated free weekend began.

The sound of boots on the hardwood floor caught her attention and prompted her to look up. She did a double take, and her eyes snapped to the large clock on the wall. 07:03. The silhouette, sharply painted against the light outside, she recognised as Kili's, and as he came further inside she could tell he wasn't quite his usual winks and smiles. She reached for a paper bag but he shook his head at her, putting his left hand briefly on the bar top as he stopped by it.

"No takeaway today. I'll take the breakfast here, please," Kili said shortly, then headed over to a table away from the sunlight being let into the café by the glazed wall and sliding glass doors. Dropping into a chair he pulled out a laptop from his bag, which he quickly flipped open.

Tauriel made the double espresso he usually ordered and assembled the breakfast plate, and went over to the corner he now occupied.

"Damn. I don't have the wifi password. You don't happen to know it?" he asked as she reached the table.

She frowned, slightly confused. "But we have an open one. Why not use that?" She put down the plate and espresso on the table, placing the napkin and cutlery properly at the side.

He looked up at her with a slightly raised brow. "The free has a few restrictions so it's of no use to me. I don't want to call Fili at this hour and ask him if I can help it."

"Oh. Right." She picked up the notepad from her apron pocket and quickly scribbled _typefriend2enter_ and handed him the note.

Kili snorted loudly and started to type. "One day I think I'll have a discussion with him about passwords."

"Is there anyone who's using the kind of passwords techs would like to see?" she asked.

"Touché," he murmured with a slight smile, his eyes glued to the screen.

She tilted her head and gave him a nod and a smirk, and headed back to the bar.

"Thank you!" he called out after her.

She glanced over her shoulder and fired off a wide smile. "My pleasure," she replied lightly.

It had become a habit of hers, since their brief encounter when their shifts had overlapped, this kind of non-committal flirtation. The smile she always was rewarded with was. . . addictive. And sure enough – despite his relatively gloomy mood this morning he didn't disappoint.

She went back to putting away glasses and cups while serving the trickle of sit-down-guests and the rushed takeaway costumers until Luka came inside again. Casually making himself a latte in a tall glass, he glanced over at the occupant in the corner.

"Something's not right. Kili actually out of bed before half past eight? I didn't know the apocalypse had started," he said with a low voice, as he poured the warm milk into his glass.

Tauriel smirked and shook her head. Luka took a sip from his coffee and studied Tauriel over the rim of the duralex. "He's been eyeing you."

She couldn't hold back a slight snort. "He has?" Looking up she did her best to look surprised. "I haven't noticed. At all."

"Well he has." He sighed wistfully and shook his head. "It's all so unfair."

"How so?"

"He's been sulking for _months_ which has been absolutely dull. Then you come along and he finally wakes up from his lethargy and starts making eyes at you – but a bit of flirting is all he's going to get."

Looking a bit bothered she shook her head. "It's just that. . . this is my job. I'm not a saint but I prefer if it doesn't get out of hand. You know just how awkward things can become if they go wrong."

Luka rolled his eyes. "Sometimes you have to take your chances!" Tauriel arched an eyebrow at him. "Fine! You can't stumble around like a bull in a china shop. Some finesse is required." He discreetly aimed in Kili's direction with the coffee glass. "Wouldn't want our dear boss' foot up my arse, after all. He's a bit prickly when it comes to Kili. Not that I don't understand that impulse, but Kili is a big boy and can certainly take care of himself."

"Oh? Why would he bother?" Slowly she toyed with a napkin and leaned her hip against the worktop. Luka put down the latte with a thump.

"You don't know who he is?" he asked incredulously.

She shook her head. Theatrically Luka threw out his hands, though careful to not spill any of the precious coffee from the glass he wouldn't let go of.

"Love, I don't think I have met anyone as oblivious as you!"

Scowling, she dropped the napkin and started to half-heartedly rearrange the tea containers next to her. "No one has bothered to tell me anything. All I know about him is that he usually swings by right before nine to pick up a free breakfast, and that he works in the bar on occasion, which is why I know his name."

Luka bubbled with laughter. "Dear me. Kili is Fili's younger brother."

Tauriel winced and stopped pushing the tea around.

"You could do worse," he said dryly.

She shook her head and put one hand on her hip. "There is nothing going on. We barely talk and I dare say I won't talk to him more now."

"Oh, I'd be _delighted_ to console the poor chap once you've stomped all over his heart. If only."

"Then go ahead and be delighted."

"Love, that's not how Kili works. When he comes knocking it's because he wants to and not because his ego needs to be stroked. And I must say, I don't see why you would reject him."

"Really? Not only are we colleagues but he's also the brother to my _boss_. I just got this job. I'd like to keep it, for a while at least."

"Oh dear. It's so obvious you haven't worked in the restaurant business before." Luka swallowed down some more of his coffee while keeping an eye on two smartly dressed women heading toward the open entrance. "Takeaway breakfast. Start packing," he continued, turning businesslike.

Tauriel reached for the bags to start putting together two takeaway breakfasts. "How do you know they'll buy takeaways?" she asked and peeked up as they stepped through the open glass doors, their heels clicking against the floor.

"Look at the time – just about eight o'clock. They're not wearing H&M so they're not some low wage office girls or receptionists. And would you look at that. . . a Posh Spice handbag. No, those are City professionals gentrifying Kentish Town. They have no time to sit down to eat a breakfast, but they can bring it, sip their latte on the Tube and force down the rest by the computer once they arrive." He threw her a quick look.

"Time and keen eyes, love. That's how you get to know your clientèle."

Tauriel made the coffee orders and watched Luka smile and make idle conversation with the women, joking innocently, which made them laugh while their payment went through on their cards. She handed out the paper bags and watched them leave.

"You see, we live and breathe this. We work ridiculously long hours, evenings and weekends, living in our own little bubble cut off from the posh nine to five world. Who do we meet? People like us, who also work ridiculous hours. Those are the only ones who have any comprehension of what it's like, and also understand why we do it. We don't fraternise with the ridiculously well-paid office people with their A-levels and university degrees." He flashed her a wide, film-star smile.

"By the way, our little eye-catcher in the corner – Kili?" He paused as he stepped past her, keeping his voice down. "He's really only slumming for a while when he's in the bar downstairs. He's a web developer. One of those overpaid professionals." He dropped off his glass in the dish rack.

Tauriel smirked. "That fortunately scratches him off the list of eligible young men then. All according to your own logic," she said as she leaned closer, keeping her voice down.

"Good heavens, woman! When did I say you should listen to everything I say?" Luka squeaked and shot her an exasperated look.

"Is Luka giving you personal advice, Tauriel?" Kili's amused voice came from the other side of the bar right in front of them.

Luka and Tauriel both jerked their heads up and Tauriel felt her cheeks warm up as Kili looked straight at her. Had he heard anything of what they had been talking about? Not impossible. He must have made an effort to watch his step to avoid alerting them to his presence, allowing him to eavesdrop on their conversation.

"Darling, you know I give the _best_ advice!" Luka coed and beamed, having recovered at Warp speed.

Kili snorted and pushed the espresso cup sitting on the bar top towards them. "I'd like another, please."

Luka sailed past Tauriel to take care of the request, somehow not making it seem obvious that he was nudging her towards Kili. She reached out and picked up the cup to dispose of it in the rack, taking care to not glance at him while she ignored Luka's slightly too audible sigh which somehow didn't drown in the noise from the coffee grinder.

"Who are you and what did you do with Kili?" Luka asked casually. "I don't think I've ever seen you awake at this hour unless you've been up all night."

Kili leaned his elbows on the bar and smiled tiredly at Luka. "Believe me, I wished I wasn't me when the alarm went off half six. There's a crisis at work and on top of this, select parts of the clan are coming here for a meeting later. If I were to have a chance of solving the problem before the meeting, working from 'home' seemed like the best idea."

"Coming in anytime this weekend?" Luka pressed the ground coffee in the portafilter, pushed it firmly into its slot and hit the button for double espresso.

"Unfortunately yes," Kili sighed. "We're short of staff again." He followed Tauriel with his eyes as she quietly slipped past Luka to greet a customer. He scooted further away from the man in a summer suit making his order, and continued to watch her. "You?" he asked Luka. "I hear there are issues up here as well."

Luka shrugged and eyed the thick creamy coffee filling up the cup. "I was scheduled for tomorrow evening already. Can't clone myself." He darted a shrewd glance at Tauriel. "She, on the other hand, is supposed to be off the entire weekend."

Tauriel tried to ignore the conversation and concentrate on the task at hand, but she couldn't keep herself from sending Luka a glare.

"I'm not the one doing the asking," Kili said blandly.

Elegantly Luka placed the cup in front of Kili and gave him a sincere look. "Perhaps you should."

"Thanks." With a small smile curving his lips, Kili picked up the cup and carried it back to his table. The man in the summer suit took the paper bag out of Tauriel's hand and hastened towards the entrance. Before he reached the doors Tauriel fired an annoyed look at Luka.

"I'm not working this weekend," she said heatedly.

"No one has asked you yet," he replied calmly. "And if they do, you can tell them no."

"I heard what you said to Kili."

"I only encouraged him to talk to you."

"I don't think he needs any encouragement." Tauriel snatched up a dishcloth and a serving-tray and strode off to clear a couple of tables, nodding at the colleague coming from the staff area to join them for the morning rush. In the corner of her eye she noticed Kili's gaze. Only his eyes were visible above the laptop screen, and they followed her movements among the tables. Demonstratively she turned her back towards him, stiffly ignoring him.

. . .

By ten the morning rush was over and Tauriel could take her first break of the day. She picked up her lunch and headed towards the back regions where she slipped outside to sit in the sun and the relative calm. The backyard was quite barren with its brick buildings and asphalt on which a few cars and Fili's motorcycle were parked, but it suited her, and she sat down on the stairs to the office, high enough to sit in the sun.

The calm lasted for ten minutes. She was just finishing off her meal when a caravan of cars drove into the parking lot, parking in the shadow of the nearby buildings. The doors were flung open, releasing a relatively large number of sober suits. Instinctively Tauriel felt that she was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

She had caught glimpses of two of the suits before – one tall brutish looking male she had named Intimidating Bloke and a shorter white-haired one. In particular, Intimidating Bloke, who looked like a Millwall supporter in a Savile Row suit, made her stomach churn when she caught his eyes. She could tell he was not the kind to waste time on pleasantries and she wondered what his connection to this establishment was.

Behind her she heard the office door open and as she glanced over her shoulder she spotted Fili, and right behind him Kili appeared. Quickly she struggled to her feet, gathering her plate and cutlery to let them past.

"Good morning Tauriel!" Fili greeted her, casually smiling as he descended towards her. "Doing well today?"

She smiled politely and nodded. "Been a decent Thursday so far."

He stopped next to her and Kili came to a halt a couple of steps above them. Tauriel did her best to ignore his presence, where he stood leaning on the stair railing with his hands, blocking the route to the office.

"Good thing I'm running into you now," Fili said and leaned against the rail. "We're a bit short of staff this weekend and I wonder if you could take some hours tomorrow evening? It's in the upstairs bar mainly, but you could be called on to help out downstairs if necessary."

Her eyes dipped to the handrail Fili was leaning at as she tried in vain to come up with a good reason for why she couldn't do it. She wondered who the snitcher was, telling Fili she possibly could be available – Luka or Kili? Her bet was on Kili.

"Luka is working upstairs," Fili half-turned towards his brother, "And Kee is going to run the downstairs bar."

She couldn't keep herself from glancing up at Kili with narrowing eyes. He was the picture of innocence as he looked down at her. So. Kili was the guilty one then, she concluded.

"We'd appreciate it," Kili said sincerely, and then a small smirk curved his lips. "Luka almost as much as I would."

Her eyebrows climbed slightly upwards.

"Well, it's always a good thing when people work well together even if their private lives perhaps are best left at the staff door." A slight edge crept into Fili's voice as he momentarily looked up at Kili.

"Giving Luka that speech too?" Kili asked blandly. "It takes two, you know, or it's creepy."

Tauriel angled her head slightly as she watched them, wondering what was really going on. Fili was glaring at his brother, who didn't bother to hide his annoyance.

"This is not a matter we should discuss here and now," Fili said and turned back to Tauriel, adopting a sincere and pleading expression. "Temp staff is in high demand at the moment and none of the agencies I commonly work with can help me. If you would consider it, I'd be very grateful."

Determined to say no, she opened her mouth, but hesitated before the words left her lips.

"Yes," she sighed, and almost felt her backbone leaving the premises. "When? How many hours?"

"Truthfully? I really need as many as you can stand."

She already regretted saying yes to this. "I'm scheduled lunch and afternoon, until six."

"I'd rather see you begin later so you can stay until we close."

"Well. . . Friday lunch and afternoon is usually packed-" She closed her mouth when Fili shook his head.

"It will no doubt be hectic, but I have a split shift proposition for my _dear_ brother – covering lunch and the afternoon with after-work in the café and then the club from ten. A lovely twelve-hour deal." Fili gave Kili a shark-like grin. "I've talked to Dori already."

Kili glared daggers at his brother, but he didn't voice any protest. Tauriel was sure that would come later however.

"Until closing then?" she asked and Fili nodded.

"Six o'clock," she offered quietly. "I really don't want to come in earlier if I'm closing."

"Six is good." Fili's relief was plainly obvious. "Thanks, Tauriel. It's really helpful. See you then, yeah?"

"Yeah," she confirmed, feeling stoic and most likely looking like it too.

With a wide smile he continued down the steps. Kili hesitated briefly before slowly following him, winking as he passed her. She watched him descend the stairs while she pondered the interaction between the brothers. Luka's words about Fili being prickly rang true, but she also wondered what was really going on with Luka and Kili. Luka was fairly open with his hankering but she had taken that as wishful thinking, in particular since he was encouraging her. After this she wasn't so sure.

As Fili and Kili crossed the yard to where the suits were gathering, talking and laughing loudly in a slightly unpolished manner, she sank down again on the step she had been sitting on. She picked up the water bottle she had brought and took a mouthful, carefully studying the group.

The brothers were greeted warmly with hugs and laughter and she wondered who these people really were. Clan, Kili had called them. That could mean anything, really. Briefly she considered asking Luka, but something in the way Intimidating Bloke was looking at her when he raised his eyes and spotted her made her hesitate. She wasn't certain she really wanted to find out.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Beware of Dwalin and Nori. They are not nice, nor are they well mannered.

_May, 2015_

"I don't understand how they stand it down there." Tauriel put down her serving-tray and started filling the dish rack with glasses. "It's loud enough up here but down there it's impossible to talk."

Luka handed out a couple of lagers and shot her a smirk. "Love, you're not supposed to talk. You're supposed to drink yourself into oblivion and find someone to indulge in carnal activities with," he said lightly.

"It has filled up down there. Becoming quite busy," she remarked and pushed the full rack to the side and put an empty one in place.

"If they need anything they can ask for help." He took another order. "Two cranberry Somersby's, please," he called out and picked up two pint glasses and started pouring the evening's special, an ale from a microbrewery in Surrey.

She pushed open a fridge door, gripped two bottles, popped off the caps and put them on the bar top. "Honestly, they are swamped. It's digging a hole in the fridges and people are stepping on each other."

Luka threw her a calculating glance. "You can't make the drinks on our menu." He turned to the next person hovering by the bar to take their order, while finishing off pouring the ale.

"But I can back them up down there," she argued and rinsed the dishcloth.

Luka took the payment and started making a mojito.

"If you can manage up here, of course," Tauriel added.

He threw her a curt look. "Oh, we can manage the bar. I simply don't want to lose you completely. Give Kili and inch and he'll take a mile." He pushed her aside and reached for a sprig of mint leaves. "If you come up here every hour and clear tables, in particular on the terrace, we'll keep this ship afloat."

Tauriel gave him a sharp nod and left to make a round on the terrace before going downstairs. She wasn't planning on making this her career – it paid too poorly to begin with – but she had started to see what needed to be done and when, and she didn't have it in her to stand idly by and watch things go pear-shaped when she could prevent it.

Kili arched his eyebrows at her when she slipped behind the bar but she ignored his questioning looks. When she ducked down by the fridges and pulled out a notepad and a pen, he caught on and grinned at her. Stocking up took quite some time when she had to mind guests and staff, and she started to question her sanity when volunteering for this. She made another round on the terrace before she approached Kili, tugging him down so she could speak in his ear. Only now she realised he was wearing earplugs, the fancier kind that allowed communication while blocking unwanted noise.

"I can back you," she said loudly.

He quickly turned towards her and his eyes went to her ears. Then he reached for something by the cash register and pressed small and springy things into her hand. Earplugs. He gestured at his ears and she nodded, quickly pressing them into place. Putting his hands on her shoulders he guided her to the taps.

"I'll point and sign the amount – you pour. Okay?" He was standing so close behind her they almost touched. He leaned in, putting his mouth by her ear and she could feel his breath ghosting over her skin. She turned her head so she could look at him and he pulled back, catching her eyes, looking for confirmation. He flashed a wide grin at her when she nodded, and gave her shoulders a quick squeeze before he stepped away. His grip had memory, and her cheeks heated slightly when she realised that she quite liked that. Clearing her throat, she reached for a pint glass, trying to focus on pouring beer and ale.

. . .

The light bathing the empty club was sharp and unpleasant and she blinked like an owl as she put down the dish rack on a table and started filling it as fast as was humanly possible. Faster, faster, faster, her brain chanted as she worked with a single-minded purpose; to get out of this place and go home.

Just as she had filled the rack, Kili put down an empty one a few tables away and went over to her to pick up the one she had filled up.

"I'll do some of the heavy lifting now. You've been at it all night," he said when she looked up. "Just keep filling them up and I'll take them to the dish station."

He didn't wait for her answer and she didn't protest either. She continued to clear glasses and bottles from tables and odd places people always seemed to find in bars and clubs.

She looked up as rapid steps approached and spotted Kili coming back with another empty rack.

"If I didn't know better, I'd swear Luka is a mind reader." He crossed the floor to the bar and picked up a dishcloth. She moved between the tables and filled up the new rack.

"He's not," she replied when he came back and started to wipe the tables. She picked up the last glasses and pushed them down among the others. "I suggested I come down here."

He looked up and nodded approvingly. "You know, I was about to ask you to come down when you turned up." He smiled at her. "You're good at backing people up behind the bar."

She picked up the rack and nodded. "Thanks."

"Put that down," he said with mock severity. "I said I'll take it."

She reluctantly put it down and he handed her the dishcloth before picking up the rack. He paused and considered her for a beat. "Maybe you should learn the drinks menu."

"Oh no." Tauriel shook her head. "I'm not angling for a position down here."

He chuckled. "Oh but think about what a team we could make!"

"I quite like the coffee and the pastries. And daylight." The corners of her mouth turned up slightly.

"Should you find yourself turned into a vampire, I'll put in a good word for you."

She snorted and inclined her head. "I'll keep it in mind," she said lightly and continued wiping the tables where he had left off. He disappeared with the rack and she finished the tables before she went upstairs.

"Unlocked the chain, did he?" Luka smirked as she came up.

Not really having any energy left she ignored the ribbing with a sigh and started putting up chairs on the tables. As she moved around she noticed that Luka was watching her while he was polishing glasses and putting them away.

"What?" she finally asked, turning to face him.

He glanced at one of their colleagues who was cleaning the espresso machine. "Just thinking," he said and scrutinised a glass before hanging it in the rack above the bar.

Giving him a long look she continued putting up chairs and then picked up the dry mop to go over the floor.

Twenty minutes later she was making her way towards the staff changing rooms, slowly untying her apron. She never changed at work, but she had a locker for her bag, jacket, her aprons and work shoes. It was quick work to discard the apron, slip into her Adidas Originals and black biker jacket, and she was on her way out before anyone else. She could hear the others making their usual loud racket in the men's changing room and she hastened her step. Her ears were begging for some relative silence and she had no wish to stick around to socialise either.

Pushing the back-door open she inhaled the cool air, stepped outside and looked up at the sky above. It was still fairly dark and the sky was overcast, with a promise of rain. She gave it all a mental shrug. Living five minutes on foot from work made the weather matter very little, in particular on the way home.

She started to cross the asphalt, steering her feet towards the now locked gate, when she heard the door open behind her with a bang.

"Tauriel!" Kili called out after her.

She slowed to a halt and turned to watch him hurry towards her, wrestling with his jacket, fumbling to find his left sleeve. Being distracted by the offensive sleeve he nearly collided with her, but she stepped to the side catching it, and holding it for him to slip into it.

"Thanks," he said and looked back at her. "Do you live far off?"

Furrowing her brow she averted her eyes. "No," she replied coolly.

He chuckled at her expression. "I'm not trying to stalk you. Luka is driving and could take you home. I wager your legs are bit stiff and those feet hurt too." He shot her a grin.

She had to grudgingly admit he was correct. "I'm glad I've got a couple of days to rest, yeah. Is he going to take you as well?"

He shook his head. "Nah. I practically live around the corner."

"Well, so do I. More or less. I really don't mind the walk home." She pushed her hands into the pockets of her jacket and leisurely continued walking. Kili fell in with her and together they strolled towards the gate.

"So what does the weekend have in store for you then?" he asked, clearly not prepared to let her slip away just yet.

She pulled a deeper breath and raised her eyes and gazed into the night with a wistful smile. "Sleep, hopefully. Books."

"Not a party girl then?"

"I'm not a hermit," she said curtly, but then she sighed and made a face. "I'm just tired. It's been a tough week and even if things are getting easier, doing this is not quite routine for me yet."

He nodded and smiled mildly at her. "I meant what I said earlier. You really are doing well. Luka has given you glowing reviews too, and he knows what he's talking about. The wittiness and flirtation aside, he takes his profession very seriously."

"I'm not the one he's flirting with," she returned, eyeing him in the corner of her eye to gauge his reaction.

Kili coughed a laugh. "You're not his type, to put it mildly."

"But dark-haired web developers with ponytails are?" She turned her head so she could look at him.

"Seems like it," he replied with a lopsided smile, not quite meeting her eyes.

She was cut off from pressing the matter by the door opening noisily behind them, letting out the last of the staff, who was talking and laughing loudly. Tauriel glanced over her shoulder and to her surprise she spotted Intimidating Bloke as the last one out, tapping the alarm code before closing the door behind him.

"Who is he?" she asked and stopped. "The one setting the alarm," she clarified.

Kili stopped too and followed her line of sight. "Oh." A small chuckle escaped him. "Now that's Dwalin. He's a cousin and very close to my uncle. He runs the security and sometimes he shows up towards the end of the evening. I suppose you were too busy to notice him earlier."

She nodded and angled her head slightly, studying Kili. "So. . . You and Fili are brothers, and Dwalin is a cousin. Any other family members involved here?"

Kili's amusement faded and his face closed off. Tauriel felt like she just had stepped into a wasp's nest somehow, not understanding how or why.

"In a manner of speaking," he replied quietly. "Banks don't usually invest in a chef in his mid-twenties with nothing but ideas and ambition."

She nodded mutely and dipped her gaze to the ground, feeling awkward.

"Kili!" Tauriel looked up to catch Dwalin coming their way, and she quickly averted her eyes and fought her inclination to pull her hands out of the pockets and reposition herself to deal with the potential threat her mind screamed at her that he was. It was better to appear as unthreatening and ordinary as possible. He had no business knowing what she was really capable of.

By her side Kili lit up. "Mr. Dwalin!" he greeted his cousin, with a widening grin.

Dwalin caught him around the shoulders and grinned back. "Don't you 'Mr' me you little brat. It seems it was a good evening!" He darted a speculative glance in Tauriel's direction and started pulling Kili along with him to the parked cars, demonstratively excluding her.

"It was! We were pushed up against the wall for a bit, but we sorted it out." Kili shot a quick apologising smile in Tauriel's direction as Dwalin dragged him off.

Luka came strolling towards her and she turned to look at him, and caught him eyeing Dwalin's back with poorly concealed distaste.

"Family. Don't you just love them," Luka said sourly.

She shook her head and sighed. "At the moment we get along best if we don't have to see each other."

He shifted his attention to her and smirked. "I like you. Did I mention I like you? I really do. Like you, that is."

She snorted and then started to laugh. "Thanks," she said and smiled warmly at him.

Luka gave Dwalin another withering glare and then turned his back on him and Kili. "Now is when I need tell you to get another job. Leave this place. For your own good."

She stared at him. "Why?" she asked, looking nonplussed.

"Sometimes I hear things and what I'm hearing now is. . . not good. It'd be better if you found something else to do and not be mixed up with this lot."

"Sometimes you don't make any sense, Luka. Just yesterday you really tried to sell Kili to me, and now you're telling me to leave."

"Yesterday I didn't know what I know today." He glanced away momentarily.

She arched her brow questioningly at him. "Which is?"

"Love, I wish I could talk." For a moment he hesitated. "This isn't about Kili as a person, but I can't reveal any details. It'd be safer if you worked elsewhere." He shook his head. "Do you need a ride home?"

"I live five minutes from here. It's silly for you to make a detour for my sake."

He looked almost pained and she pulled her right hand out of the pocket, reached out and put it on his upper arm. "It's on Gloucester Crescent. Nice posh neighbourhood. I have a bedsit there."

"Gloucester Crescent?" Luka echoed with suspicion. "Which number?"

"Um. . . Sixty?" she replied, a bit perplexed by his reaction.

Luka closed his eyes and rubbed his forehead. "Of all the addresses in London. . . "

"It's actually lovely. Well kept. It's almost like a studio to be honest," Tauriel said lamely.

He managed to smile at her. "I imagine it is. I hear she's a nice person, your landlady – Mrs. Whelan."

She nodded. "But. . . you don't like her?"

"I haven't met her in person, but I have heard a lot about her. Good things, I have to say." He shook his head. "Love, come along. I'll take you home. No protests." Sternly he ushered her towards his little car.

. . .

Only after she closed the door to her room behind her, she realised she had forgotten to ask how he knew who Dis was.

o.o.o

It was Sunday afternoon and the last Premier League games of the season were airing. Under normal circumstances neither Dwalin nor Nori would give a shit about football, but this Sunday they did. Or more precisely, they cared when Chelsea FC were playing.

Whether Chelsea or Sutherland won wasn't important. What was important was that the White family and their associates - the biggest competitors to the Durin family, also known as the Chalk Farm Syndicate - and all staunch Chelsea fans, would be gathered in their favoured pub, getting pissed while watching the game. The latest report was that it was a full house. It was looking good, Nori concluded, pleased by the developments so far.

He was sitting shotgun in a blue-grey BMW sedan, currently equipped with false number plates, and he was casually and repeatedly flipping a Zippo lighter open and then closing it.

Snap. Click. Snap. Click.

Dwalin shot him a glare, his white knuckled grip on the wheel revealing his annoyance. Nori ignored him and stared absently at the river as they sped on towards Battersea Bridge.

Snap. Click. Snap. Click.

"Nori, for fuck's sake! I'll punch you in the face if you don't quit," Dwalin growled as he hit the brakes to stop at the red light by the bridge.

"Who's going to pull this little stunt then if you do?" Nori replied, unfazed by Dwalin's outburst.

Dwalin ground his teeth and his nostrils flared. "Just. . . stop."

Nori smirked but put away the lighter, and picked up his phone instead.

"Turn that thing off. We don't want to announce our presence to the fucking coppers."

Rolling his eyes he turned off the phone. "You really think they'll be going 'I wonder who did this. It's a complete mystery!'" he asked sarcastically.

"Of course they'll know but we don't need to leave a trail for anyone to find," Dwalin hissed. "All of a sudden there's some eager constable keen on making a career, tracing phones and stumbling over us – and then we need to pour some more money into the black hole that is the so-called justice system to get us off the hook."

Nori turned his attention towards the outside again as the car started moving. They travelled over the bridge down towards Battersea and Clapham Junction in silence. As they approached their destination, Nori gradually tensed, his keen eyes scanning everything, making sure he'd not overlooked anything.

They had gone over this plan enough times to know exactly what they should do and Nori trusted Dwalin to do his part. It would be a cold day in hell when Dwalin spoiled an operation such as this. Nori had the easy job really. It was reckless, but if everything went according to plan, the Whites would be taught a lesson they would never forget, and all Nori would have to do was to take a stroll. Throw some insults around. Then run.

Dwalin parked the car outside the pub and gave Nori a long look. "See you on the other side in a minute," he grunted. Nori cracked a lopsided smirk and held up a flare.

"Time for some fun!" He put the flare back in his pocket, opened the car door, stepped outside, and pushed it shut. Dwalin gave him one last glare and drove off.

The pub had the worst security Nori had ever seen. Or rather, it had none. A few people were hanging about outside smoking, but they were clearly just regular patrons and they didn't look twice at him as he walked past and opened the door to the pub. Inside the mood was high, and a quick glance at the large screen revealed that Chelsea appeared to be winning.

He smirked and crossed over the floor, making sure his escape route was clear. Swiping his arm over a table, he cleared it of glasses which crashed loudly on the floor. He took two more steps and swiped off some more glasses.

"Oi you fucking cunts!" he shouted and paused a few seconds to allow people to react. "You're really pathetic. You expect to be taken seriously, pissing drunk all of you, like sitting ducks?"

The reaction was on the slow side which he had anticipated. People were confused, not sure what was going on, but once everyone had taken a look at him and registered what he was saying, they were scrambling to their feet and moving in on him. They were not looking happy, just as expected. Nori showed his teeth.

"I stroll in here and no one even blinks. Could've had a bomb belt on me. Boom! All you fucking cunts would have been dead and gone." He pulled out the flare and lit it, holding it in front of him while waving it at the crowds' faces, keeping people at bay as he retreated. It was time to get out of there.

"You were caught with your trousers down and everyone will laugh at you when they hear about it! Oh, and Thorin sends his love, by the way!" He backed out through the back door and threw the flare at those who were the closest, slammed the door in their faces and turned and ran for all he was worth.

Silence reigned for a few seconds but then the fracas erupted behind him. The door almost came off its hinges and there was a lot of inarticulate screaming and shouting as people were scrambling to squeeze through and chase after him. Nori didn't bother looking back but concentrated on getting to the BMW waiting for him. The door swung open just before he reached the car and he more or less dove inside. The moment he landed on the seat Dwalin stepped on it, and Nori reached out and closed the door with more force than necessary, as the car came up to speed.

Nori was almost pissing himself with laughter. "You should have seen their faces!" he chuckled. "Pity they won't live to remember it."

"We hope," Dwalin returned grimly. They sped past the second unit standing by waiting for them; cars and motorcycles with Dwalin's lads, heavily armed. The gathered vehicles revved up and headed in the direction Dwalin and Nori were coming from. Dwalin ignored them and kept driving. Their job was done and all they should do was to get out of there as quickly as possible.

Nori didn't react to the rapidly fading staccato sound of gunfire behind them, but Dwalin's eyes went briefly to the rear-view mirror, then he glanced at Nori.

"Put on your fucking seatbelt," he said coldly.

Nori sighed. "We just lured dozens of people to their deaths and you're picking on me for not using a seatbelt?"

"We don't want to attract any attention. Put on that bloody seatbelt or I'll wrap you in duct tape when we get back! Without clothes."

Nori snickered. "Now that could be interesting."

"Don't. Try. Me." Dwalin aimed a stormy look at Nori.

"Fine." Nori reached for the seatbelt and fastened it, then leaned back against the seat, stretching his legs. As they passed MI6, heading up on Vauxhall Bridge, he smirked and closed his eyes.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Reminder: the tags do mean something. And this IS Kiliel, and there are 7 chapters coming after this one, so please don't flip any tables.

_May, 2015_

Tauriel absently registered Dis' familiar voice drifting through the open doors of the conservatory, and it made her pause for a moment, though she didn't look up. She reached for her phone, pressed the button on the side of her Sony, and checked the time as the screen lit up.

With a mental shrug she put it down on the table again and went back to reading. It was Sunday and usually at this time Dis was out having lunch with her sons. Something had happened, but probably nothing important. Holidays getting in the way, most likely.

Just as she found the sentence where she had been distracted, another voice penetrated her consciousness, and this time she froze. The voice was a well-known one but she had never expected to come across its owner here. She whipped her head around and stared through the glazed conservatory wall into the kitchen beyond. The unmistakeable blond and slightly unruly curly mane belonging to her boss was hard to miss, despite the relative darkness in the kitchen compared to the sunny garden where she was sitting.

Fili's laughter drifted through the open door. "There's a reason why I insist on eating out, mum. I do this for a living, in case you have forgotten."

"Don't you go head chef on me you little brat. Get on with those onions! Peel and chop!" Dis replied with mock sternness.

"Yes chef!" Fili chuckled. "Bloody hell! You make me feel like a second grade commie."

"Well you were for many years in this kitchen." Dis sounded wry.

"Thanks mum."

"You _should_ thank me. Without my boxing your ears you'd not be where you are now."

Fili took a step to his left, grabbed Dis around her shoulder and pressed a kiss on the crown of her head. "Though you never did box my ears." He let her go and went back to the onions.

"Should have. Probably." There was an obvious smile in her voice.

"She saved that for me, but I was too good at dodging it!" another male voice gleefully exclaimed, and Tauriel winced, then her cheeks started burning. Oh, she knew the figure strolling through the kitchen towards the conservatory. Kili. He stopped just at the opening to the conservatory and leaned against the wall.

Of course. Fili and Kili were brothers and if Dis was mother to Fili, naturally Kili was her son too. If Fili was here to see his mother because it was Sunday, there was a high probability Kili would come along.

Tauriel's eyes snapped to the door leading into the house, located next to the conservatory. If she didn't make a bustle, she should be able to slip to safety unnoticed, she calculated. The entrances to the house and the stairs leading to the levels above were separated from the kitchen and the adjacent reception room by a wall. If she just made it to the back door she should be able to steal away.

She closed the book and rose slowly. With a firm grip on her phone and her book she calmly and quietly walked to the door. As she reached the steps she knew she was out of sight from the kitchen. She released the breath she had been holding and opened the door, letting herself inside. The door to the fairly large reception room was open, and she heard the voices in the kitchen quite clearly. The knowledge that they were just beyond the wall hurried her steps. She did not want to be caught now.

Focusing on escape, she slipped out of her shoes and rounded the bottom of the banister, trying to avoid the worst creaking steps in the old stairs as she sneaked upwards.

"Tauriel?"

She stopped and closed her eyes.

Damn.

A slight, possibly embarrassed, chuckle lured her to turn her head and peek over her shoulder, looking down.

"It _is_ you! I saw you in the garden coming inside." Kili seemed genuinely astonished, then he darted a glance up at the levels above. "Some coincidence," he continued with a lopsided smile.

"I have a bedsit here," was her feckless reply as she half-turned toward him.

"I guessed as much," he smirked. "Which one?"

Tauriel frowned at him.

"Oh, come on. I grew up here. I know this house better than anyone. Even Fili."

"The top floor," she said quietly.

His face lit up with a wide smile. "Best room in the house! I used to love to sit on the roof at night this time of the year!"

Tauriel felt her cheeks heat up and she tore her eyes from his face, dipping them to the steps under her feet.

"I'll not tell mum you do it too," he said and smirked knowingly at her.

"Why would you assume. . . " She fell silent as he struggled to bite down on a grin. There was really no reason to pretend she hadn't crept outside a couple of times to do some star-gazing herself.

"It's nice," she agreed instead with a slight smile.

"It is." They looked at each other while the silence started to become awkward. "So how long have you lived here?" Kili asked in an effort to make conversation and, she suspected, keeping her from disappearing upstairs.

"Not long. Since late April."

"Kee, are you trying to escape kitchen duty again?" Fili shouted from the kitchen.

"I'm being polite and making conversation!" Kili replied and grinned. He kept looking at her as if that would keep her where she stood. Now that she had been discovered it seemed a bit silly to hide though. She slowly started to descend back down.

"Is she pretty?" came the amused question. The next moment a high pitched squeal made Kili snort.

"No such behaviour in my house. Not anywhere else either!" Dis seemed genuinely annoyed as she scolded Fili.

"Don't mind my brother. He's an idiot sometimes," Kili said quietly and then turned towards the open door. "You should know if she's pretty, Fee. You hired her," he replied loudly enough to be heard in the kitchen. Looking back at her he winked. "That should bring him here."

Tauriel stopped on the last step. In the kitchen the bustle ceased and then she heard what could only be Fili's footfalls on the other side of the wall. The next moment he appeared in the doorway, staring at her.

"Tauriel!" he managed, looking as surprised as Kili had been a minute ago.

Dis appeared in their midst and gave Tauriel a brief smile. "So you're home, dear? Well, I know you've met my eldest but I didn't know you've had a run-in with Kili as well."

Fili's eyes travelled between his mother and Tauriel, "I had no idea you lived here!" He burst into a laugh. "Well, now I know you're not living in a dump with mould under the carpet!" Turning back to his mother he continued, "I hope you're not charging an outrageous rent from the poor girl."

"Well, I suppose I could simply stop charging her and go directly to you, since it's your money," Dis replied dryly. "No, Fili. I do charge a rent, but it's a decent one. Unlike my brother, I have no intention of hoarding money."

She looked at Tauriel and smiled. "Come down from there, dear. Please join us in the kitchen, or this Sunday roast most likely will never be finished!"

Dis went back to the kitchen, leaving Fili and Kili looking at her expectantly. "I promise I won't put you to work," Fili said reassuringly, then turned his head to look at Kili and elbowed him in the ribs. "You on the other hand. . . "

Kili held up his hands. "Oi! I work full time and do shifts in your bloody bar in top of that!"

"You mean you sit on your arse dawdling the days away pretending you're doing useful work?" Fili smirked wolfishly at his brother and then glanced at Tauriel again. "Come on! If nothing else you need to eat at some point anyway," he urged and then left as well.

"I don't want to impose myself-" Tauriel began but was interrupted by Kili who shook his head.

"No no! It's very casual and we don't mind any additions. And mum won't let Fee throw pots and pans around in her kitchen so you're quite safe."

She couldn't hold back a snort. "Does he do that a lot?" she asked as she stepped down from the stairs and dropped her shoes next to the wall by the bottom step.

"On a couple of occasions, but I'd say he had good reason." He nodded at the door. "Come on. Let's join them."

With a nod and a small smile she stepped through the door and Kili followed her.

. . .

In the end Kili and Tauriel didn't do anything but set the table. Kili because he somehow managed to evade every attempt at putting him to work, and Tauriel because she found herself perched on a bar stool, ordered to sit. It was just as well, she concluded. Not that she was an exceptionally poor cook, but she couldn't be compared to, in particular, Fili. She could tell by watching him why the restaurant he was running had a Guide Michelin star.

The conversation was light and everyone somehow managed to steer clear of family and work, something everyone seemed to silently agree to. Tauriel was used to quiet family meals where economics and antiquities were the main topics – with the occasional sprinkle of politics, which she preferred to not comment on as it inevitably would lead to icy quarrels.

The Whelan family was opinionated in a friendly way, talking about what was going on in the neighbourhood, things they'd heard or read about, often laughing and never missing an opportunity to make a pun.

Both brothers had a weakness for exceptionally poor poetry, competing by coming up with the worst sonnets they could, littered with poor rhymes and clichés. As they tried to outdo each other over the dessert, Tauriel realised why Kili was so quick to use innuendos and platitudes. It was quite entertaining, she had to admit. Poor sonnets were much more enjoyable for a Sunday roast meal than discussing old furniture at any rate.

. . .

The entire afternoon was gone before Fili and Kili eventually said their goodbyes. Fili had chosen the Tube over the motorcycle since he had brought wine for the roast, so the two of them left together on foot. The early evening was fair and not cold considering the time of the year, and they strolled down the street towards the Camden Town tube station, enjoying the relatively fresh and balmy air.

"She's nice, Tauriel," Fili said lightly.

The corners of Kili's mouth curved upwards slightly. "Thought you knew?"

"No one has said anything negative about her, and I know Luka likes her, but I've not talked to her much. Busy doing other things, you know. Unlike others, I hear."

"Idle gossip," Kili retorted.

Fili gave Kili a sideways glance. "You like her."

"Don't you?" Kili countered.

"Not in the same way. Kili, I know you. She practically ticks all boxes on your Very Secret Wish-list."

With a chuckle Kili asked, "Does that mean I can convince you to give me her number?"

"You could have asked her yourself," Fili pointed out.

"Didn't want to do it in front of mum and I know her well enough to know that asking for it at work is a bad idea."

"You're a coward."

"I am," Kili acquiesced with a grin. "But I take comfort in the fact that you're as much a coward as I am. I remember-"

"Shut up, will you?" Fili snorted and shook his head. "That was years ago! I thought you had forgotten by now!"

Kili cackled a laugh. "Never!"

Fili made a tragic face and sighed loudly, but then he turned his head to consider his brother. "But seriously Kili. You don't see a problem here?"

Kili's brow furrowed. "No?"

"Luka? Tauriel and Luka are not only colleagues, both working in the café, but they are almost always scheduled together, at least part of the day."

Rolling his eyes Kili started, "You know-"

"People say a lot of things they don't really mean to get what they want," Fili cut off.

Kili's brow knitted into an impressive scowl. "You really have a problem with wrapping your head around him, don't you?"

"I don't trust people who claim they don't mind the person they sleep with straying."

"Which means you don't trust me," Kili smirked.

"When it comes to you it tells me you don't exactly see yourself growing old with him, to speak plainly. But Luka might not be quite as carefree and generous as he claims if you wander off. In particular with a colleague of his."

Kili shoved his hands down into his jeans front pockets and stared down at the asphalt as they crossed Arlington Road.

"I would not have cared much if it couldn't potentially become my headache. I just want you to understand the potential for disaster here. Don't do anything unless Luka is well informed and if there's any doubt, walk away."

They stopped on the street corner just outside the pub next door to Kili's flat. Fili fished out his phone and started tapping and a few seconds later there was a beep in Kili's pocket.

"You think about this, okay?" Fili said sternly. Kili nodded and Fili tugged him in for a hug. Fili's phone went off and he let go of Kili and looked at the phone with a frown.

"Mum," he announced and accepted the call.

Kili watched Fili as his face transformed, slowly paling as he listened. When he ended the call he looked quite distressed.

"Fee, what's going on?" Kili asked with open concern.

"War."

Kili was the picture of disbelief. "What are you talking about?"

Fili's eyes darted away and he scanned the surroundings, then moved closer. "There's been a shooting in Clapham. It's all over the news. A big thing – brutal. There's no doubt who's responsible for the carnage."

Kili tore his eyes from Fili and set off towards the entrance to the pub, stepped inside and when he found the TV he stopped and stared at the screen where news images from south London flickered past with the latest bulletins rolling under them. Fili followed and came up next to him.

"Dear God," Kili whispered.

Fili tore his eyes away from the screen and hung his head. Kili noticed that a couple of the patrons sitting by the bar had turned, studying them carefully. He didn't know them by name but he knew their faces and they seemed familiar to him and his brother too. Ducking his head he started backing away, reaching out to pull Fili along with him.

"Poor sods," Kili mumbled as they stepped back out on the street.

"You do realise what this means, don't you?" Fili asked.

"Yeah," Kili sighed.

"You keep your head down now Kili, you hear me? Because this will come back to haunt us all for a long time." Fili gazed gravely at his brother.

Kili scowled. "You're a much fatter target than I will ever be."

Reluctantly Fili nodded and put his hands on his hips while sighing in frustration. "I'll do my bit. Promise."

"Fuck," Kili hissed between his teeth.

"I need to swing past 37, and I suppose I must talk to Uncle. Come by the kitchen tomorrow some time, yeah? This is not something we should discuss on the phone."

They hugged again and Kili watched Fili hurry off towards Camden High Street. Slowly he turned around and walked home. On impulse he picked up his phone and for a moment he stared at the notification from Fili about the text message containing Tauriel's number. It would be selfish and stupid to pull her into his life right now and the thought made him feel like when he was a kid – that impotent anger when things were ruined and he couldn't do anything about it. He opened the call list and scrolled down until he found Luka's number, and pressed the phone symbol. He had to talk to someone. Now.

. . .

The silence Fili and Kili left in their wake was almost tangible. As much as Tauriel had enjoyed the afternoon, she was also pleased that the house had returned to its tranquil state.

She strolled into the kitchen to pick up some of the left-over dessert to hide in her fridge upstairs for a late-evening snack. With the plate in her hand she headed towards the stairwell but she slowed as she came into the large reception room that held the TV. Dis had turned it on to watch some evening news and now she sat with a hand over her mouth, staring at screen. There was a flurry of images of ambulances, glimpses of people who were either dead or hurt, and a detached male news reporter voice gave details of dead and wounded in what appeared to be a crime-related shooting in south London.

Tauriel sighed and shook her head, not at all surprised when the reporter mentioned the infamous White family as being the victims. The police suspected the northern Chalk Farm Syndicate, led by the Durin family, to be behind it, but at this point they had little to go on. She smirked as she heard it. Of course they would find very little, if anything. Briefly she wondered what this would mean for the area she was now living in, as it was considered to be the syndicate's heartland.

She shrugged and left the room. It would not concern her, in particular since she had left the family business.

o.o.o

Kili opened the door and let Luka inside without a word, though he didn't look at him. The flat was semi-dark and the large screen on the wall was turned on, showing the latest news footage. Luka glanced at it and then focused on Kili, slowly lifting his hand as if he was dealing with a skittish animal, and put it gently on Kili's shoulder. Finally Kili met Luka's eyes. He felt a strange numbness, as if what was happening didn't really concern him, and now when Luka was here, he was embarrassed by his reaction, to instantly call and whine. Not a very mature reaction.

"How are you?" Luka asked quietly.

Kili put his hands on his hips and his eyes flickered away, and he ducked his head. "I'm fine. They're not." He waved at the screen.

"Where's Fili?"

"Home. Got a message just now."

Luka sighed. "I wish you didn't have to be dragged into this."

Kili shrugged. "I'm just related to them."

"You know it's not that simple." His grip on Kili's shoulder firmed. "You're like an aspen leaf. Come here." He pulled Kili into a hug, and Kili hid his face in the collar of Luka's jacket and gripped the fabric at his back.

"This is just so ridiculous. I'm sorry," Kili mumbled, pressing his eyelids shut in an effort to ease the burning sensation in his eyes.

"Kili, what happened this afternoon was gruesome. It's something people you've grown up with and love has done. They have blood on their hands and it will have repercussions for you and Fili for god knows how long. Anyone in your situation would be shaken by it." Luka ran his right hand gently up and down Kili's back. "Breathe in through the nose and out through the mouth. Calm and steady," he mumbled.

"Did you know?" Kili asked.

"That they'd do this?" Luka asked and Kili nodded. "I knew something was about to happen soon, but not what. Yesterday I got a specific warning – stay away from Clapham. I couldn't imagine they'd do something as vile as this though." He shook his head. "They're clashing about the usual things. Money and dominance."

"There are times when I hate being part of this family." Kili's voice was barely above a whisper.

"Fili and your mum are also your family. They have no part in this."

They stood for a long while by the front door, Luka firmly holding Kili who in turn tried to not cling to him.

"We don't need to hear and see more of this," Luka eventually said and untangled himself enough to steer Kili towards the futon sofa, sitting him down and turning off the TV with the remote.

"You need anything? Something to eat? Drink?" he asked.

Kili looked up at him. "No food. Fili and I were at mum's and had Sunday roast." He gave Luka a pained smile. "Ran into Tauriel."

Luka arched an eyebrow. "No wonder since she lives there."

Kili squeezed his eyes shut. "You know everything. How do you do it?"

"Slight exaggeration. But I know because I have the habit of chatting with people." Luka pressed Kili's shoulder and went over to the kitchen. He opened a cabinet door, picked up a glass and filled it with water, and returned to the futon. "Drink this," he urged Kili, who opened his eyes again. "I'm sure you'd like something a bit stronger, but that's not a very good idea."

Kili took the glass from Luka's hand and drained it. "I actually feel queasy so alcohol does not appeal to me right now."

Luka discarded his jacket, sat down next to Kili, and leaned against the backrest. He reached out, caught Kili's shoulder and tugged at it. "Come on. Lean back and stretch out a bit. You'll feel better if you're not squishing the belly."

With a sigh Kili fell back and stared at the black screen across the room.

"How was she?" Luka asked.

"Who?" Kili looked nonplussed.

"Tauriel?"

"Oh." Kili turned his head away and faced the glazed wall hidden behind the pulled down blinds. "Fine, I suppose."

Luka nodded slowly. "Why do I get the sense that there's suddenly an elephant in the room?"

Kili didn't respond.

"Have things gone wrong between you?"

With a snort Kili shook his head. "It'll not go anywhere now."

Luka heaved a deep sigh. "Why don't you explain the situation and let her make that decision?"

"Why? It's not like there's anything going on really. We've just chatted a few times, flirted a bit, that's all. Today was the first time we sat down to talk and. . . " Kili's voice trailed off.

"You realised she's really as nice and clever as she seems?" Luka smirked and Kili made an annoyed sound. "If there's anyone in this world who has a right to comment on this I think that would be me. I like her and I knew you would too. A lot. It's been obvious that you've made an impression on her as well, even if she's trying to keep you at arm's length."

"I don't think telling her 'I really like you and by the way, my uncle is the London equivalent of the Godfather, involved in all sorts of criminal activity and would dearly like either Fili or me to take over eventually' is going to convince her to start seeing me. In particular not now when this has happened."

Luka chuckled and then cleared his throat. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't laugh. But it would be a rather original pick-up line." Kili didn't respond. "You were beginning to like her quite a lot, weren't you?"

Kili half-turned his head back at Luka and nodded. "Oh Kili," Luka sighed and wrapped his arm around Kili's shoulders and hugged him. Kili inched closer and leaned his head against Luka's.

"Fili even gave me the patented big brother lecture when he gave me her phone number just before we learned what had happened." Kili winced at how he sounded like a whining brat.

"It's up to you, but I still think it would be better to let her decide. She's not easily frightened or put off. A few weeks ago I told her it would be better if she found herself a new job. Hinted that it could be dangerous to stay. Once she realised it wasn't about you personally she simply shrugged it off. I'd not make any assumptions of what she'd say if I were you."

"I can't handle a rejection on top of this. I'm fucking pathetic." Kili mumbled with contempt.

Luka shook his head. "No, you're not. Being rejected hurts."

Kili was quiet for a while. "Are you supposed to be in at that ungodly hour tomorrow?" he asked hesitantly.

"No, fortunately I'm off tomorrow."

"Good." Kili was relieved. Now when Luka was here, he didn't want him to leave, but he didn't know how to ask him to remain. He just didn't want to be alone.

"Was that a roundabout way of telling me you'd like me to stay?" Luka gave Kili a lopsided smile.

"Not really, but. . . " Kili went quiet and tensed up.

"I'm not going anywhere if you want me here," Luka reassured him.

"Thank you." Kili started relaxing again when his phone pinged. Reluctantly he moved around to extract the phone from his pocket. "Fili," he said as he opened the Facebook chat and replied. Luka carefully edged away and reached for the empty glass resting next to Kili on the sofa.

"Want more?" He dangled the glass in front of Kili.

"Yeah. I feel strangely thirsty." Kili looked up from the phone and made a face. "I haven't done anything today but I feel exhausted. And slightly squeamish. That hasn't eased up."

Luka tilted his head. "Sounds to me like a stress reaction. Do you want to do anything or would you rather just sit around being quiet?"

"I don't think I'll be able to concentrate on anything more complicated." He dropped the phone in his lap and stared vacantly at the opposite wall.

"Sleep?" Luka suggested lightly.

Kili's wide eyes snapped to Luka's, betraying the internal conflict between want and the guilt about what he considered to be an immature reaction to this situation.

"I said sleep," Luka said calmly. "I think I can read you well enough, but you're the one to make the decisions," he continued dryly, dropped the glass on the small table by the futon and stood, steering his feet back to the kitchen.

While Luka opened the kitchen cabinets and rummaged around in them, Kili watched him thoughtfully. He knew Luka quite well but for some reason he saw him in a different light this evening. While Luka always had been attentive and never sarcastic and mean, Kili had not seen this kind of quiet gentleness until now. For the first time he wished Luka weren't so fiercely independent and determined never to close any doors. It hadn't mattered that much to him before but now it suddenly did. Briefly he closed his eyes and swallowed. It was all just desperation and self-pity speaking, he decided.

Luka found a pitcher and started filling it up with water. Kili turned his attention to the futon he was sitting on. He dropped the phone on the table next to the empty glass and slowly rose from his seat. Instead of converting it into a bed however, he ended up staring at it as if he were paralysed. All his energy seemed to have drained away.

"Let me help you." Luka put down the pitcher and the second glass he had brought with him on the table and quickly turned the sofa into a bed.

Kili watched him, feeling utterly useless. But he was also very grateful, which made his smile slightly. "Thank you," he said quietly when Luka straightened.

"I never thought I would see you this forlorn," Luka reflected.

"Silly, innit?" Kili hung his head.

Luka gave him a gentle smile. "You'll feel better after some sleep. Want me to call Dori about tomorrow? Take some time off and do something completely different? If you want, I'm all yours tomorrow and on Tuesday."

Kili peered up at him through his mussed hair. "You've never showed this care-taking side before."

Luka shrugged. "What can I say? It takes someone as cheerfully unfazed as you falling down a black hole to bring it out."

They stood gazing at each other and Kili was quite sure it wasn't just he who felt that things somehow at some point had changed between them.

Luka smiled. "Bed. I'll call Dori." Kili blushed, feeling pathetic. He shouldn't need Luka to handle matters with Dori and he should definitely not seek any comfort beyond what Luka already offered. It didn't matter that Luka didn't mind, it was still not honest, in Kili's opinion.

"No, stop that." Luka shook his head, stepped close and cradled Kili's face with his hands. "You're allowing me to see _you_ , all of it, and not just the cheerful and outgoing Kili. That's trust. It's precious." He smiled gently.

Kili took a steadying breath. Luka was so disarming and he found he couldn't resist it any more. Tentatively he lifted his hands and put them on Luka's hips and leaned in and kissed him. Just one brief kiss, then he drew back slightly. Luka pushed his fingers into Kili's dishevelled hair and returned the kiss.

"I'll just make that call, yeah?" Luka whispered. Kili nodded with a faint smile.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So. I fell down some concrete stairs and got myself a concussion which is why you had to wait for this update. I'm a klutz. Yes I am.

_July, 2015_

Tauriel pushed the staff door open and stepped outside, taking her usual deep breath – and inhaled cigarette smoke. Glancing to her left she spotted Kili sitting on the stairs leading up to the office, focussing on his phone, with a cigarette burning between the fingers of his left hand.

She stopped, at war with herself as to whether or not she should talk to him. After the Sunday roast almost two months earlier, Kili had disappeared for two weeks, and when he re-emerged, his behaviour could only be described as mercurial. For the most part he avoided her, acted distantly or awkwardly in her presence, and sometimes he stiffly excused himself, but on a couple of occasions the skittish attitude melted away and she glimpsed the Kili he had been at the beginning in her company.

Tauriel did not appreciate being toyed with and her attitude had cooled significantly by now. Annoyingly enough, she had to admit that she was hurt by the way he acted. At first she suspected he had been charmed by some new acquaintance, but she had quickly discarded that idea after a brief conversation with Luka. No, he told her. Absolutely not. And since Kili continued to talk to Luka, she supposed he would know. She didn't think he'd lie to her either.

Luka didn't seem to approve of Kili's behaviour towards her either. He'd often try to smooth things over and a couple of times she had caught him sending disapproving looks in Kili's direction.

She felt excluded and couldn't help wondering what could have brought this change on. She sincerely hoped he wasn't shunning her because he had found out who she was. Her dad had made enemies in the past, she knew, and there was always a risk that she'd run into someone who didn't like the family because of that. Then of course, it could simply be because she was older and well-educated. Since Fili had her CV, she expected Kili to have found out. Perhaps he had and then decided he didn't like it? Men with more going for them than him had backed out once they realised.

As usual he had tied up his hair and absently she wondered what he'd look like if he let it down. Half-long, mop-like, and suspiciously a lot like the well-known too-lazy-to-get-it-cut style, she guessed. He had a stubble, of course, and the leather jacket and boots had been replaced with what was the summer uniform around the neighbourhood: a thin bomber jacket, dark blue jeans – folded of course – and boat shoes.

She shouldn't even look twice at someone like him, and she hadn't in the past. So far she had learned that he was several years younger than her, didn't have a proper academic education, and generally came across as adrift and moody. But despite this, she still couldn't entirely banish him from her mind.

"You should stop smoking," she told him disapprovingly.

His head whipped up, looking like a deer caught in the headlights. "Hi Tauriel," he said and gave her an uncertain smile. When she didn't respond he glanced at the cigarette between his fingers. "I'm trying to cut down. I only smoke about five a day now but it's hard to cut those last ones entirely."

"Not harder than cutting out the previous five," she said coolly.

He looked embarrassed and laughed nervously. "You'd think that. . . " He shook his head and peeked up at her with a slight smile, more amused this time. "You're quite frank."

She shrugged. "You discovered that just now?"

"No. I noticed it before."

"Really. You've not come across as being terribly interested in noticing anything about me for some time," she retorted tartly and straightened slightly, looking down her nose at him.

"No, I suppose I haven't," he admitted, looking chastened, which puzzled her slightly. Was this to be yet another incarnation of Kili?

For a moment he hesitated, then he drew a deep breath. "I wouldn't mind changing that."

"Is that so?" she replied tonelessly, trying to keep the annoyance welling up inside from exploding in his face. If he thought she would be won over with smiles and charm after this summer, he was in for a surprise.

"For no apparent reason I turned into a pariah, no explanations given. I wouldn't mind an explanation to begin with."

He pressed his lips into a thin line and averted his eyes. "There's been some pretty nasty things happening lately, family related, and. . . I didn't really want to talk about what's been going on. Not pull anyone into that shit either." There was a pause. "I didn't enjoy avoiding you." He looked back at her. "I like you. I genuinely do." After another pause he added, "I'm sorry."

Tauriel considered him while she assessed the truth in what he told her. It seemed genuine – if a bit disturbing. "Will it continue to be a problem for you?" she asked.

Kili ducked his head, which was answer enough. She drew a deep breath and nodded.

"My master's is not in psychology and I have no intention of picking it up either." She angled her head slightly and looked at him with concern. "But there. . . is help. Real help."

He snorted and shook his head. "Nah. These problems are of a more of practical kind. Families are difficult sometimes. From time to time I wish I hadn't been born into this particular one, but it's not like I could choose. It is what it is."

His words resonated with her, bringing up recent and painful memories. This was something she understood. "I'm sorry," she offered quietly.

He gave her a joyless smile. "Not your fault."

"No, but I know a little about difficult families."

"Thank you." He was quiet for a moment. "I'll try to do better in the future," he promised and his smile softened.

Tauriel shrugged and returned the smile. "Does Luka know?" she asked quietly.

"He does, yeah." He nodded. "He has known all there is to know all along."

That explained a lot; why Kili had distanced himself from everyone but Luka. Even if she still had questions, she understood the situation and accepted the apology. Details would perhaps come later.

She found herself in a bit of a predicament, however. The ice was broken, which was a relief, but she hadn't really changed her mind about her initial objections concerning him. She wasn't blind. She could tell he wouldn't mind taking things beyond friendship.

"Kili, I don't like when my life is complicated, in particular not at work," she said, and crossed her arms over her chest.

He nodded and considered this for a beat. "I'm not interested in becoming a fixed feature around here. Fili has a tendency to take my services for granted and it's not like I don't want to help him out when he's in a tight spot, but this isn't exactly a career choice. I have a life of my own I'd like to focus on."

"I'd say that this _brother_ thing is a bigger issue than us potentially working a shift or two together. He _is_ my boss, you know."

"I can't help being related to him," he protested. "Whether we see each other or not, and for whatever reason, is none of his business anyway."

She arched her eyebrows at him. "And you don't think that what happens to you won't matter to him?"

"Oh, he likes to have opinions, but he's also aware that I don't like him interfering. He and I have had this discussion before, and he may not like some of my decisions, but he has respected them so far. Most people will probably like you a lot better than some other people in my life, though they'd not tell me this to my face." He gingerly took a drag on the cigarette, squinting at her through the smoke.

For a second the question to whom he was referring to was on her tongue, but she swallowed it. Her feet were aching, she was tired and hungry and really not at all prepared for more truths today. Briefly her eyes drifted towards the street and she decided any other confessions he was willing to make could wait for another day.

"Listen, it's nice to have a few things cleared up and I hope it stays that way, but I'm knackered and I really only want to get out of here." She started backing away. "See you around, yeah?"

"Have you eaten?" he asked.

She stopped and hesitated. "It's growing late and I'm supposed to be in by five tomorrow morning. I just want to go home, put a Pot-of-Noodles in the microwave, and crash in my bed."

Kili rose, dropped the cigarette and stepped on it, and strolled towards her. "You've adopted the glamorous barista lifestyle, I hear," he said with a lopsided smile. "Come on. You can at least make that a takeaway."

"I don't know the neighbourhood that well yet and I don't want to do the research today," she protested.

"You've been here for three months and you haven't tried the take out places around?" He looked incredulously at her.

"I have tried a few, but it's too expensive to make takeaways a habit." Not that she had made it a habit before, but that was because she considered it unhealthy. Money had not been the issue then the way it was now.

"Well, behold your saviour. I'm a literal Camden Time Out guide," he told her cheerfully and threw out his arms.

"Of course you are," she snorted.

"It's Fili who is the chef, not me." He grinned widely.

"I noticed during that Sunday lunch," she said dryly. "Do you have _any_ domestic talents?"

"No, not really. I was never very good at any of it, at least in comparison to Fili, so I always did my best to avoid cooking, cleaning, ironing the shirts. . . " He lit up. "But I'm really good at doing push-ups! And it looks cool."

She stared at him for a beat and then burst into laughter. "You're doing this on purpose aren't you?"

Kili smirked and shrugged. "Of course. When I burn the toast or buttons are missing in my shirt, you'll know why." Tilting his head he continued, "So, what do you want? Lebanese, Turkish, Chinese, Indian, burger, pizza. . . "

"Something fast."

He chuckled. "Point taken. There's a chippy down the street that's decent. Not too bad to sit down there either should you ever feel like it someday." He set off across the asphalt. "Come on! Time's-a-wasting!"

Tauriel reluctantly followed. "I'm not sitting down for a meal."

"Then don't."

She quickened her steps and caught up with him. "I'll just order a takeaway and go home."

"You have already made that clear."

"Don't try to persuade me to eat out."

"I won't."

She eyed him suspiciously in the corner of her eye. "Are you getting some for yourself?"

"I am. Told you – it's Fili who is the chef."

They walked in silence the short distance to the fish and chips shop and entered. It was a lively place with plenty of people and a band making quite a racket upstairs. Despite her weariness her curiosity was piqued and it seemed like an interesting place at first glance.

"The tired ladies first," Kili said and motioned at the counter.

Suppressing a sigh she stepped forward and made her order, then moved to the side as Kili made his.

"I'll pay for both," he announced and dug out his card.

"Kili, no!" she protested.

"Kili yes, because I earn a lot more than you do." He pushed the card into the card reader. "This is after all my suggestion and more expensive than a Pot-of-Noodles."

"Are you going to walk me home too?" she asked tartly when they left the chippy with their food.

"You know, it might seem like it, but the fact is that I live half-way to my mum's house from here. I really do have to walk the same way as you to get to my flat."

"What a coincidence," she said dryly.

"I didn't know you'd move in with my mum and work for my brother when I got my flat."

They stopped by the traffic lights just a few yards from the fish and chips shop, waiting to cross the busy street. There were still plenty of people moving about and like a shoal of fish the crowd flowed across the street as the light switched from red to green. Tauriel and Kili broke away from the steady stream of people on the busy high street and steered their feet towards the calmer back streets.

"What were you doing outside the staff entrance anyway?" she asked.

The corners of his lips curved into a smirk. "I wanted to talk to Fili but when things started to pick up in the kitchen he threw me out. I had just stepped outside when I got a message I wanted to respond to, hence my sitting down and having a cigarette."

A small smile played on his lips as he regarded her. "I could be waiting for you if you agreed to see me some time."

It was cheesy, but it was so very him. It could be a joke, some banter, but so far he had been sincere when he said similar things to her. "You really mean that?" she asked instead of laughing it off.

"Yes, I really mean that."

She was quiet for a moment as she chewed on her bottom lip. He was really good at wearing down her defences with his honest confessions, sound arguments and reminders that he really did want to spend time with her. "Kili, I have to ask you something."

"Ask," he urged her and smiled.

"It's about Luka." She paused, not quite sure what to say.

He looked like he had expected her to bring it up, and he started toying with his lighter he picked up from his pocket, aiming his focus on the street ahead. "Luka and I have known each other since 37 opened last year. I liked him a lot from the beginning and it turned out to be mutual. We've seen each other since."

Tauriel nodded, even more uncertain of what to think and say.

"I was going to bring it up," he said quietly. "I'd not call it a relationship, because Luka can't be contained in one. Not in the standard definition of a relationship anyway. But I wouldn't say I've been single either. It goes up and down. Over time we've become very good friends. He's one of the best I have."

She nodded again. "And is it up or down now?"

He smiled slightly. "Down." The smile faded. "I don't want to be unfair to Luka when I talk about this. He should be the one to tell you why he has made his decisions."

With a sigh he continued. "He means a lot to me, but I have known all along that I would never be the only one in his life. There have been times when I wished it wasn't like that, but it is and I accept that." He smiled slightly.

"Sounds complex," she said quietly.

Kili glanced at her. "It's just not black or white."

He was tense, she noted, not knowing exactly what her reaction would be. She had already guessed that there was some kind of history between Kili and Luka, but it turned out to be a bit more complicated than she had thought. She struggled for a moment to contain a laughter bubbling up. This was certainly not how she had imagined her day when she had woken up in the morning. The situation seemed somewhat bizarre from her tired perspective and her initial annoyance was turning into amusement instead.

At the sight of her smile, Kili lightened up and smiled back at her, gradually relaxing.

"What about you then? Are you staying at 37?" he asked, decidedly more cheerful than before.

She shook her head. "I'm not going to make espresso for the rest of my life." She squinted with her eyes as she looked around the intersection they'd reached, before she started crossing it, heading for a narrow street disappearing south.

"I was heavily dependent on my family, which isn't good if you have a significant disagreement and feel you must break with them," she explained, hurrying to reach the opposite side to get out of the way of an approaching car.

Kili kept up with her. "I haven't come to that point yet and I hope I never will. I prefer if they're at a distance though," he sighed.

"Your mother seems like a good person," she said carefully, beginning to really wonder about what was going on with his family. He appeared to be on good terms with his brother and mum, so it had to be something else. Or someone else.

"Oh, mum's the best. I love her to bits. And my uncle and Dwalin were my heroes when I was a kid." His expression once again turned guarded. "As I grew up and started to understand a few things. . . " Shaking his head he looked down at the ground. "It is what it is." He repeated his words from earlier.

Tauriel nodded. "I came here to get away. Hide, if you like. My family would never set foot here. I hated it when I was growing up since the zoo is here. We never went and I didn't understand why. I tried to come here a couple of times in my teens because, well, with the market and the night life it's a fairly attractive place for someone that age. I thought my dad was going to kill me when he found out."

"Odd." Kili frowned. "Camden is fairly harmless these days. It was different when my great grandparents packed up the family and came here right after the war, but all that is long gone now."

"Your family is Irish?" She turned to look at him with open curiosity.

Kili glanced away for a beat. "As many are around here, still today."

"Mine is firmly East End. Limehouse to be precise." Discreetly she watched him to see if he'd give any indication of having Googled her, but there was no reaction and she breathed a bit easier for it.

Kili slowed and they stopped in front of a new development squeezed in between one Victorian brick building housing a conference centre, and a plain refurbished Georgian one, with flats on the two upper levels and a pub below. The complex they stopped next to had an aggressive post-modern look; a broken up curved façade with dark stained glazing and rendered details in terracotta, white and minty green.

"This is it? Where you live?" she asked and her eyes travelled the length of the glass and aluminium frame in charcoal grey, to the entrance door in oak and clear glass. "Looks. . . posh."

"It's just a studio flat. Nice though. An entire wall is glazed letting light in. Double glazing, French balcony, under heated floor with tiles. . . Just about everything that mum's eighteenth century house isn't," he chuckled.

"I'm officially envious. It's a nice bedsit I've got, but it's still just a bedsit. It'd be wonderful to have a flat. What do you pay for it?"

"288 per week. Adds up to 1249 per calendar month. Not so bad considering that it's entirely new, well planned and reasonably spacious. And it's a five-minute walk to work."

She quickly looked away and stiffened, pulling up her shoulders slightly. "Well, that's firmly over my budget." She had expected it, and to be honest she was surprised it wasn't more expensive. It looked to be more pricey than that. But with her current income anything similar was completely out of the question.

"It would be a bit hefty for me as well if I only had the income from my job, but there's a fund from which I receive a monthly pay, so I live quite comfortably."

"A fund?" She tore her eyes from the building and looked at him.

"When my dad died my uncle set up a fund for me and Fili from which we would receive money from the day we turned sixteen," he explained with an even voice.

"Oh." Tauriel's cheek turned pink. "I'm sorry."

"I never knew him," Kili said mildly. "I was only four months old when he died. Car accident."

She gave him a long thoughtful look. That explained why he hadn't mentioned his dad, she thought.

"So." He shuffled his feet for a moment. "Would you consider sitting down to eat someday soon? Talk some more?" he asked, peering at her.

A small smile curved the corners of her lips as she watched him. She wasn't sure it would be wise to encourage him but on the other hand she suspected he could be quite fun to be around. Just because they went out it didn't mean anything had to happen, she decided.

"Wednesday next week?" she suggested.

"Wednesday sounds good," he replied with a wide smile. "I'll see what I can come up with."

"You said you don't cook," she reminded him.

"I have been known to make the occasional pasta." He laughed at her sceptical look. "No, I won't torture you. Expect a restaurant meal."

"Um, I don't have your. . . " She went quiet as she saw him picking up his phone, tapping away on it. A moment later her phone started ringing and she fished it out, looking at the screen. The Truecaller app told her a Kili Whelan was calling her. Her eyes snapped up at Kili. "You have my number?"

He tapped on the screen and her phone stopped ringing. Looking up he shrugged with a smirk. "I asked Fili." He nodded at her little food package. "It's getting cold."

She glanced down at the bag in her hand and was startled by him quickly stepping close and pulling her into a one-armed hug, giving her a kiss on the cheek.

"Enjoy the meal," he said and put a few inches between them, meeting her eyes. "Hope you get a good night's rest too." Shooting her a warm smile he left her standing on the pavement looking after him as he strode up the steps to the entrance.

As he had disappeared inside she slowly backed away, turned and continued towards her own home.

…

Kili quickly climbed the stairs and let himself into the flat, slammed the door behind him, and hurried to the glazed wall, only briefly stopping by the laptop to turn it on. He caught sight of Tauriel just before she reached the street crossing, and he watched her disappear around the corner before he sank down by the computer and opened the browser. It was time to find out more about her, he decided.

Tauriel Ward, he typed and hit enter. She wasn't exactly a social media person but she had a Facebook account at least, all locked up unless you were friends with her. He didn't send her a friends request since that would reveal that he had Googled her.

What caught his eye was something else. Aside from Facebook, the first Google page was filled with links to Ward Security Ltd. Skimming through what he found made his eyebrows slowly climb upwards in mild surprise. He continued to fine tune his search, until he had dug out what he considered to be enough information about her.

The founder of Ward Security was Tauriel's dad, a fairly well-known figure to Kili. Not that he had met the man in person, but his uncle and several other family members had plenty to say about him. Not very nice things. Thranduil Ward had once served with the Special Air Service Regiment before he started his company, and some time before Kili had been born a conflict between his grandfather and Thranduil had made them bitter enemies. Though he didn't know exactly what caused the schism, he knew enough to figure out that it had to do with weapons.

Present day Ward Security Ltd was a respectable-looking company with branches in several major cities as well as having international contracts. A company expansion, catapulting them from a medium-sized business mostly offering patrol of properties and basic security packages to one of the larger companies in the business, had taken place recently, over the past five years. The woman behind this expansion was Tauriel.

He just stared at the screen when he found her CV. Not only was she nearly five years older than him, but her education was impressive, as various other sources citing her work related achievements indicated. She had left all of that behind, had moved to Camden, and now was working for a fraction of what she must have earned before, while living in a bedsit. A nice bedsit, but still a bedsit. How did that happen?

He leaned back against the office chair and stared through the glass at the plane-tree planted on the opposite side of the street. Uncle hated the Wards almost with the same passion as he hated the White family down in Clapham. He, on the other hand found, that he didn't care. Not one bit. In fact, it attracted him. He knew he was in deep waters with her, and he understood some of her apprehension, but it didn't put him off. At all.

The threat from south of the river was still there but summer had slipped by and there had been nothing, no retaliation whatsoever. He was tired of having to alter his life and decisions because of a feud he had no part in. It was this dissatisfaction that had prompted him to impulsively stop avoiding talking to Tauriel earlier this evening.

He had a life to live. How long was he supposed to keep it on hold because of what some people in his family had done? He couldn't do it indefinitely. The past months had made it clear that he couldn't get her out of his mind and when Luka had set out on new adventures to put some time and distance between them, it became decidedly more difficult to keep up the façade of indifference. No logic helped. It was about time he ended this silliness and moved on with his life. With a smile he reached for his takeaway meal, unwrapped it, and popped a couple of chips in his mouth.

Wednesday, he mused. It was an entire week away. While he slowly chewed on the deep-fried potatoes he contemplated what to do in the meantime. If Tauriel thought he'd sit back and wait quietly in the coming week, she was mistaken.


	6. Chapter 6

_July, 2015_

"Something has happened," Luka said suspiciously as he passed Tauriel with his serving-tray. "You're _smiling_."

"I'm quite certain I have smiled before. Many times." She closed the glass door to the pastry display, which she had tidied up.

He put his tray down with a distinct thump and glared at her. "Not like that." Clinking just a bit too much to be coincidental he started filling up the dish-rack.

"If I do, is that a problem?" she asked and started going over the sugar dispensers, shaking them to make certain there were no clumps.

"It's all about the reason for this smile."

"I'm not smiling now." She unscrewed the lids.

"I'm sure it's just a glitch in the newly written code." Luka picked up a dish cloth and wiped off the serving-tray. "Here comes trouble by the way," he murmured.

Tauriel looked up and saw Fili approaching.

"I can give you my analysis of his smile if you're interested," she offered.

"There's no need. I'm very familiar with what that look on his face usually means." Throwing the dish cloth in the sink, he started making a hasty retreat but found himself caught. "Please remove your hand from my waistband," he hissed.

"Oh no. You're not running away now." She shot him a toothy grin which didn't warm her eyes.

"I don't like that smile either."

"Pity then that I don't care."

"Hello," Fili greeted them, his eyes darting between the two of them, not missing Tauriel's firm grip on Luka's trousers. He was not entirely successful in quelling a smirk at the sight.

"So how are you doing today?" he continued lightly, pretending he hadn't noticed Tauriel forcing Luka to stay and hear him out.

"Excellent, thank you," Tauriel replied with a sweet smile which somehow felt a bit cloying. Luka put on a smile too, somewhat strained.

"I'll not disturb you for long. We have a problem tomorrow evening up in the restaurant. We're quite well booked already so we'll be busy, but we don't have anyone manning the food elevator. Would either of you be interested in taking that shift?"

Tauriel's face fell instantly and she shot Luka a look, whose smile merged into a look of stoicism.

"I can't," she blurted. "For once, I can't."

Fili's brow furrowed slightly. "Is something in particular happening this Wednesday that I don't know about? I already asked Kili, but he refused point blank. Wouldn't say what he was going to do instead though."

Tauriel stared at him for a beat and then dropped her gaze to the disassembled sugar containers in front of her while her neck and cheeks turned into an interesting shade of crimson. The furrow on Fili's brow smoothed and Luka's stoicism turned into resignation.

"I want Saturday off," Luka declared.

"Harsh, but I'll see what I can do," Fili replied. "Thanks Luka." He smiled at them and left, picking up the phone to give his brother another call.

Luka faced Tauriel, looking indecisive. "So you're seeing Kili?" he asked. "That's what has you in such a good mood, isn't it?"

Squaring her shoulders she looked Luka straight in the eye. "Yes. We had a little chat about a week ago, sorting out a few things between us."

He nodded, still looking uncertain, but then he put his hand on her shoulder. "Tauriel, I'm reluctant to give you advice, in particular since I don't know what Kili has told you, but you need to be cautious. I mean what I said back in May," he said quietly.

She sighed and made a vaguely frustrated gesture with her right hand. "You talk about them as if there's some dark secret they're hiding, which doesn't make any sense since you're clearly not distancing yourself from Kili, nor are you looking for work elsewhere. From what I have seen so far, there's nothing out of the ordinary with them. Fili runs a reputable restaurant business and Kili is perhaps not as ambitious but he's still doing just fine. Yes, there are family issues, but they're certainly not the only ones who can boast about that."

Luka looked torn and inched slightly closer, shifted his hand to press her upper arm. "That family has a history, love, and sooner or later it will catch up with them."

"It can't be that bad. What is it? Problems with the Inland Revenue? It's not like I haven't seen _that_ before. Expectations they don't want to live up to that have caused a rift? Those things happen. Family members involved with things you don't want to touch with a stick? We could compare notes."

"Just. . . be careful. And you should start looking for something in the City instead of working as a glorified cleaner here." He dropped his hand to his side.

"I already have. I won't be doing this for much longer." She smiled reassuringly and started to refill the sugar dispensers.

"I hope you don't think I'm telling you this because I'm jealous."

Carefully she poured the granulated sugar into a container, making certain she didn't spill any of it. "The thought has crossed my mind. Either you've not been upfront with him or he's not being entirely honest with me. Since you and I work together I'm inclined to believe him, since I can ask you about it." She glanced at him.

"So, what's the truth?" There was a distinct demand in her demeanour.

Luka gave her a pained smile. "Oh, I fancy him, no doubt about that. Too much to be honest. It's why I have stuck around for so long, and while I really should move on, I have realised I'm not terribly inclined to. But that doesn't mean he's the only person in my life. He never was and he has known all along – and accepted it too, bless him. I'd never begrudge him seeing other people. It would hardly be fair, would it?"

For a moment he was quiet, studying Tauriel. "You're clever. Surely you've guessed a few things without anyone telling you?"

"I have."

"And?"

She paused the pouring, looked up at him and opened her mouth to speak, but struggled to find words. "I haven't been in this situation before. I admit that I think it's a bit odd, but. . . Well, nothing has happened either. We're just talking."

Luka smirked and looked amused, and she nodded. "That's how he does it, isn't it? Joking about his shortcomings and _talking_." Luka nodded his confirmation. "And you're not interfering or throwing fits because that would be unfair?"

He smiled gently at her. "That too, but I like you. You're a keeper."

Her cheeks heated up. "So what's the problem with me seeing him then?" There was an edge to her question and her eyes were sharp, demanding honesty and truth.

For a while he stood weighing his words. "There's nothing wrong with the brothers and Kili is fun, kind and generous, and absolutely loyal to those he cares about. The problem is his family. They're not always nice and you'd do well to remember that. You're just too-"

"I'm not as naïve as you think," she cut off. "I do have a gut feeling and it tells me to be cautious and discreet. And I intend to be just that."

"A gut feeling," he repeated.

She hesitated. "Dwalin," she told him.

Luka nodded slowly. "Hold on to that gut feeling, love. Don't forget."

o.o.o

The restaurant was nearly full and a fair number of people recognised Kili and greeted him enthusiastically when he and Tauriel entered. He took a few moments to exchange a few words with some of them before joining her at the table, but it was clear that was it – she'd have his attention the rest of the evening.

This was to her relief no pricey white table-cloth experience and he hadn't been joking when he had said it would be very local. It was. In fact, it was just around the corner from where he lived.

"It's too easy to make this place my living room," he grinned as they sat down. "You'll see in a while when the food comes in."

"It could almost _be_ your living room," she replied dryly.

"Oh, I could have been living in one of the flats above. Now I actually have to walk some 50 yards or so," he said, pretending to be distracted by the menu, then looked up with a wide grin.

The food lived up to the hype and he was an attentive listener, she realised, not being depreciating when she mentioned she liked science fiction and had dreamt of becoming an astronaut as a child. He talked a bit about his family, but not in any detail and several times she was on the verge of asking him about the reason for Luka's wariness. She couldn't muster the courage to do it though.

She didn't talk about her own family and what had brought on something as drastic as cutting all ties, and he didn't ask. Not that she thought he didn't care – she was fairly certain he wondered about that – but he apparently understood that it would be a good idea to let her choose when to talk about it.

Unfortunately she couldn't keep her yawns in check, probably making her poor company. She had rolled out of bed half past four in the morning and as the clock was approaching nine she simply couldn't help herself, though she did try.

At her third poorly-hidden yawn, Kili snickered and shook his head. "I fear you'll end up falling asleep with your face in the dessert at any moment. Come on." He stood and waved at the waitress, who smiled and waved back but didn't hurry over with the bill. Startled, Tauriel looked from the waitress to Kili and back to the waitress.

"It's settled," he said with a smile.

She rose from her seat and scowled at him. "Kili, I want you to stop this now. I may not earn a lot, but I'm not destitute. I wasn't exactly doing poorly before I decided to leave my old life behind and though I normally try to avoid digging in to my savings, I was quite prepared to do it for this occasion. As it turns out it wasn't needed, because I can foot this bill even on my kind of pay."

She turned and headed out of the restaurant, feeling off kilter. This was not how she had pictured the evening to end and though she absolutely meant every word she'd said, she didn't want to quarrel with Kili. He caught up with her just as she stepped outside but he didn't immediately say anything. They passed the crowd standing outside smoking and talking, and continued towards their respective homes.

"Tauriel," he finally said and reached out to touch her hand as they approached the street corner, well away from curious people. She slowed to a halt and let him slip his hand into hers. "I go there so often I have credit. I settle it monthly. I was not joking when I said that thing about it being my living room. One extra meal doesn't matter to me and I don't expect anything from you." He paused for a moment, taking in her expression.

"I'm hoping that you like me enough to see me again though. Soon." He looked down and tugged at her hand. "I've said it before but I think I need to remind you. I like you. I really do." He peeked up at her with a small smile.

She ducked her head and sighed. "I'm an idiot."

"Why?"

"I'm tired and I'm overreacting and jumping to conclusions when things really are quite simple and straightforward."

He chuckled. "I remember someone calling it complex about a week ago."

The corners of her mouth curved into a slightly embarrassed smile. "I'm just floating along, accepting things as they are."

"I know you have talked things over with Luka," he said quietly.

She nodded. "We have and I think I understand. Thank you for being honest about it."

He gave her a long sincere look. "That's easy enough to be honest about. Some things I prefer to not talk too much about. Not now anyway."

She shrugged, sensing they were skirting around the edges of the thing that irked Luka about Kili's family. She wanted to know, but she didn't want him to feel pressured to reveal anything. Shifting her hand, she laced their fingers together. "You may recall that I have not said a word about my past. I haven't because it's complicated, and like a poor version of a Shakespeare drama. Do you consider that dishonest?"

"I think it's probably painful. And it happened quite recently, didn't it?" he asked and she nodded. "Fili is right though. I'm a coward," he sighed.

"Aren't you a bit hard on yourself?" She could see his hesitation and internal debate, then he shook his head.

"No, I feel I need some more time." He looked down the street to the restaurant they had just left. "And it's not because we're standing on a street corner where we are currently being watched by several people I know who are pretending to just have a smoke."

She darted a glance at the crowd outside the restaurant and three heads quickly turned away. When her and Kili's eyes met again they both chuckled. Impulsively she closed the gap between them and pressed a kiss on his lips.

"That should give them something to talk about," she breathed with a smirk as she pulled back a few inches.

He stared at her for a beat and then his face lit up with a warm smile. "It's a pity you live just down the street."

"Oh?"

"Imagine the speculation if we just disappeared around the corner together."

"I could take a detour," she grinned.

He snorted but shook his head. "As funny as that would be. . . No. I have some hopes that you like me well enough, but I'm not going to put you in situations where you could feel pressured into anything."

Her eyes darted away and she tensed slightly.

"Hmmm, is he a conniving bastard? Too good to be true?" he mused airily.

She snorted and looked back at him and he smiled and shrugged. "Only time will tell."

She heard the sincerity in the joke. "I had a nice evening," she said impulsively.

"So did I," he replied quietly and his jesting tone had vanished.

The simple reply made her feel giddy and she couldn't hold back a smile. The little voice that usually kept her from acting brashly and from making foolish decisions was taking on a note of panic as half-formed thoughts and ideas of what she wanted to do in that moment started tumble in her mind. In pure defiance she opened her mouth and said, "I'm free the coming two days, if you feel like doing something."

He lit up. "I have work daytime, but I don't have any plans for the evenings."

She nodded and then coloured from embarrassment. "I have no good suggestions what to do though."

"You caught me a bit off guard here too. I must confess I haven't done my research," he chuckled.

"We could look into it and decide tomorrow," she proposed.

"Absolutely," he agreed with a quiet sort of enthusiasm.

They fell silent and stood gazing at each other, both hesitating, uncertain of what to do and say next. Tauriel was acutely aware of their closeness and the fact that their hands still were linked.

For the second time in less than five minutes she took the initiative, though this time Kili saw it coming and kissed her back.

With a slight smile she broke the kiss. "Sleep well," she said softly.

"I doubt it," he replied with amusement gleaming in his eyes.

She leaned forward and whispered in his ear, "I like you too," then slowly backed away, pressing his hand one last time before releasing her hold. He reluctantly let her go as well and smiled.

"Good night." He looked as content as he sounded and with a smile of her own she turned her attention to crossing the street, and headed home.

o.o.o

Thirty-six hours later they woke up in bed together. In his bed, because neither were comfortable with such an encounter with Dis three floors down and the risk of casually running into her on the way in or out.

After silencing the alarm on his phone, Kili growled and rolled back, wrapping himself around her, nuzzling her skin on her neck, not showing any inclination of getting out of bed.

"Before I go back to sleep I'm going to remind you that I'm in no way responsible for you getting to work on time," she murmured sleepily.

"No, you're responsible for making it unusually difficult for me to even show up at work today," was his muffled reply. He started lazily kissing her neck.

"It won't get any easier if you continue doing that," she said with a smile.

"You mean you'll help me make it more difficult?" His hands started to wander under the sheet.

"Something tells me you set your alarm with only just enough time to step into your clothes and run out the door to make it on ti-" Kili hoisted himself up and put his mouth over hers and she went silent. Well, she concluded, he was a grown person and she was not going to be some sort of voice of reason. In particular since she didn't want to listen to it herself. Leisurely she kissed him back and shifted slightly for comfort while she lifted her free hand and started following the contour of his side down towards his hip with her fingers. He smiled into her mouth and then turned his attention back to the skin on her neck.

"Dori owes me overtime and annual leave, so I just decided I'm going to be late, at the very least," he mumbled.

She didn't offer any words as reply, just a quickened breath.

…

The evening before they had agreed on going to the Roundhouse roof terrace-turned-beach since the weather was fair.

"It's just so surreal," Kili said enthusiastically as they talked it over on the phone. "Imagine: fine grain sand, _real_ beach sand, those beach chairs you can't get out of once you've sat down, and overpriced drinks with silly names – on a rooftop."

"And that's it?" she asked with poorly-concealed scepticism.

"You obviously have to bring the fun yourself. There will most likely be someone I know, but I could talk to a couple of friends and have them come and join us."

Suddenly butterflies started fluttering in her belly in an uncomfortable way.

"Tauriel?"

"Yes. Yes, I'm here."

"Or we could do something entirely different." Watchful caution tempered his voice.

She wanted to kick herself. It was just to say yes and float along. It was only _people_ and Kili had probably suggested he'd bring along a few friends to ease any sense of pressure on her.

"No! It sounds good!" she hurried to say.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. I was just reminded of how rarely I socialise these days. It's been like that for far too long." It was entirely true. Aside from a few times when she had joined a couple of her colleagues at a pub for a pint of lager or two, she had basically only worked, tried to uphold some kind of exercise regime and stayed at home, sending out work applications, reading and sleeping.

"Do you think anyone you know would consider coming along? East End isn't that far off," he suggested.

Instantly the nervousness eased. "Not impossible. I'll call around," she said, feeling decidedly more cheerful.

With that it had been settled, and she had made the calls, surprised to find that two of her closest friends, Erin and Yvone, were quite willing to come and see her.

It had been exactly as cheesy and ridiculous as she had expected, but the company had made it a fun experience. Kili's friends had been nice, but the true highlight had been seeing her friends. They had come together and Tauriel had jumped up when she spotted them and quite uncharacteristically she jogged to meet them and caught them both in a big hug.

"It has just been too long!" she exclaimed, feeling almost teary-eyed.

"How are you doing? You know, it's been so strange not seeing you around back home," Yvone said as she pulled back.

"I'm doing fine, considering. I've still got that job I told you about, and it's going reasonably well. But I'm looking. Hopefully something interesting will turn up soon."

" _Someone's_ keeping an eye on us," Erin said lightly, and Tauriel glanced over her shoulder, catching Kili looking their way.

"Come and meet them," Tauriel replied with a smile, and they strolled over the sand to the small group sitting around in both beach chairs and on the sand.

Drinks had gone down and Tauriel, Yvone, and Erin had spent most of the time catching up, though they had been pulled in to the general discussion from time to time. They sat in the sand because there was a lack of beach chairs, and Tauriel casually positioned herself next to Kili as if it were unintentional, which it of course wasn't. It didn't take long before he relinquished his chair and joined them sitting on the ground. They sat close, and as the evening progressed the accidental brushes turned into more deliberate touching.

Yvone and Erin were the first to leave, but the others soon followed, leaving her and Kili alone. The air was a bit chilly and the sand felt cool to the touch. Tauriel regretted having dressed in a thin cotton dress, even if she had brought her jacket along. She was reluctant to leave though.

"You're cold," Kili said as she in vain tried to shake off the chill.

She smiled. "My own fault. I dress for Italian summer and then freeze my arse off in the poor English weather."

He chuckled and casually reached out, putting his arm around her shoulders, pulling her firmly to his side, and then rubbed her upper arm with his hand.

"They're closing soon anyway. We might as well go home."

Her smile turned a bit strained as she turned to look at him.

"It was a good evening," he added.

"Yeah." Her smile widened and the strain was gone.

She wasn't quite sure how it happened. It wasn't a conscious decision as the day before when she had _decided_ to kiss him. They simply leaned in and kissed, slowly and cautiously. Though she'd had a few drinks, she was by no means drunk. She felt the alcohol, but not enough to blame her behaviour on any inebriation. Neither did he seem particularly affected.

Briefly she forgot that she was cold, and instead she indulged herself until her body betrayed her and decided to shiver, and not out of pleasure. He broke the kiss and leaned his forehead against hers.

"It's definitely time to go home," he murmured, his amusement being obvious.

She sighed. "Remind me to dress better in the future. Jeans and a sweater is a better choice for cold summer evenings."

He chuckled and they climbed to their feet and brushed off the sand, then headed for the street below.

Tauriel felt the chill even more keenly as they started walking and once they were down on the street Kili wrapped his arm around her, holding her close with a lopsided smile. A similar smile curved her lips too as she snaked her arm around his mid-section.

They didn't talk as they walked, yet the silence wasn't awkward. They just existed, together, and that was quite enough in that moment. As they passed the canal, just more than halfway home, the strain she had felt before came trickling back.

She wasn't torn, not exactly. They liked each other. Well, to be honest, she more than liked him, and it seemed to be mutual. So what was the problem? It wasn't Luka. The connection between him and Kili was not the source of her apprehension. This was more about her than anything else.

"What are you thinking about?" he asked quietly, as if he had sensed she was turning something over in her mind that was important.

"That I might be putting up walls to keep people out and create obstacles that aren't there." It was not what she had meant to say, but she instantly felt it was exactly what was going on.

"Some things are complicated whether we want them to be or not," he returned solemnly.

She hummed but didn't explain her musings further. They continued to walk in silence for a while, but her contentment had been replaced with a restlessness, an urge to not let any opportunities slip between her fingers, and she was certain he felt her tension too.

Before long they approached his flat and slowly came to a halt outside the entrance. There was a street light placed right in front of the complex and the harsh light created deep shadows. She couldn't quite read his face as she looked at him and she drew a deep breath.

"I can invent all sorts of problems and reasons why I shouldn't do certain things. Why?" She angled her head and made a face. "Because it's unknown. Frightening. I don't have control. It seems easier or safer to not act. I struggle with this a lot." She paused and drew another steadying breath. "But not today."

She closed the slight gap between them and kissed him, passionately, determined to not go for any half-measures. It was made easier because he responded in kind, and it sent fire coursing through her body.

A few moments later his hands slipped down on her hips and broke the kiss, and put a few inches of air between them. Her belly turned into a nest of worms churning with embarrassment. She had been so pleased that he didn't appear to assume anything but was she presuming too much instead? Slowly she breathed through her nose and raised her chin and met his eyes. Internally she cursed the street light above their heads making it almost impossible for her to read his face.

"I'm thinking a lot about you. So much, in fact, that it's becoming a serious distraction. I know what I want to do about that. Do you know what you want?" His voice was low and had an intense rasp, and despite the shadows the challenge was plainly obvious in his face.

Her stomach bottomed out in relief, as if she were free-falling and the nest of worms turned into liquid heat, quickly travelling south, spreading down her hips and her thighs. The strength of her emotion surprised her a little and her breath turned more shallow. The strength of the reaction surprised her. She couldn't remember the last time she had experienced anything similar and that in itself excited her.

"I thought my little speech about not inventing obstacles made that clear," she replied with a coy smile.

"That's just a general notion," he said gently without losing the intensity.

She tilted her head and smiled. "Let me make it more clear, then. I like you. A lot. And not in a platonic way, even if I appreciate the fact that we have things to talk about too. Right now I don't want to make conversation, just get you out of these clothes. If you want to, of course."

"I'd love to," he murmured with a growing grin. Tearing away, he caught her hand and dug out his keys as he led the way up the steps to the entrance, opened the door and let them inside.


	7. Chapter 7

_August, 2015_

Thorin, the head of the Durin family, also known as the Chalk Farm Syndicate and the most successful family in the London underworld, leaned back in his chair and studied his younger nephew. While not as driven as his older brother, he had a lot going for him, not least his cheerful and easy-going disposition. It was something of a façade though, something he hid behind when he felt insecure or didn't want people to look too deeply into who he was.

This façade also hid that Kili had some rather strong opinions and his very own code of conduct he stuck to with religious zeal. He was a very loyal person, to his family first and foremost, but anyone who made it into his good graces could rely on him. So far there had been no conflict between interests, but such things could always change and Thorin was not at all certain he would come out as a winner in such a conflict. Grudgingly he had to admit that he respected that in Kili, even if it potentially could cause him problems personally.

It wasn't often there was an addition to this inner circle of Kili's. Thorin had a hunch there was about to be one though, and it always made him wary. At first there had only been vague mentions from Fili that his brother had his eye on one of the girls working in his establishment. Thorin had not paid much attention to it since it was quite obvious the relationship with that senior manager in Fili's company continued. Thorin certainly had opinions on that, one being that he'd never trust anyone who couldn't officially commit themselves and the grief it could cause his nephew. But he had other objections too, though he had been careful to not voice them in Kili's presnece.

But recently there had also been several sightings of Kili in the company of a redhead, and according to Dwalin, who had seen the two leave through 37's staff entrance together only yesterday, it was the same woman Fili had been talking about.

Now, in theory, this was not much to be concerned about. Kili had always been socially very active and just because he perhaps was drifting towards someone new, that didn't mean it would develop into anything sincere. However, Kili had slowed down when Fili got caught up with his business. Thorin had always suspected that Fili was just as much of a social butterfly as Kili, just not as flamboyant. There was no doubt in Thorin's mind the two were triggering each other, but he was also certain that Fili really had been the driving force behind a lot that had happened over the years.

In such a situation it was worth taking note of Kili's fancies as they could become a lot more, and fill up the void his brother had left, in particular if that barista was on the way out.

This Sunday Kili was in a very good mood, which was a pleasant change. After what Thorin thought of as the Clapham incident, Kili had kept out of the way and his cheerfulness had been replaced with an evasive silence. Thorin suspected that the reason for this change was that redhead, and the frequent use of his phone seemed to confirm this. It was on silent, but he kept picking it out of his pocket, checking it and taping quick messages. And he _smiled_. Kili was well beyond such besotted behaviour with his previous entanglement. It wasn't just Thorin who noticed, but Fili too noted the phone use out of the corner of his eye with a small smirk on his face.

Thorin stared through the large windows at the unappealing façade of the building across the street and contemplated what to do next. He hated not knowing everything, but he hadn't given in entirely to paranoia. Kili had made clear he didn't appreciate any interference in his private life, and Thorin wasn't keen on challenging this, at least as long as it wasn't detrimental to the family's interests. And that was really the problem. Thorin did not know if it would be.

He could set Dwalin on it and let him dig out everything there was to know about this young woman. Did he have cause to do it? Always, in his own opinion. The rest of the family did not necessarily agree however, in particular not his sister. It would have been much easier if his nephews hadn't decided they wouldn't be involved in the family business. So far Thorin had played along, but he would have preferred if they could cease with that nonsense. They didn't understand the dangers and the need for prudence because they believed they were unaffiliated with him. That was simply not the case. Unfortunately he had no means to convince them otherwise.

The lunch progressed slowly, as it commonly did when the entire clan, or most of it anyway, was gathered. Eventually people started moving about and Thorin seized the opportunity to catch Fili. After a few polite questions about the state of the restaurant business, leading to lengthy complaints about unstable availability on certain products and the ever present headache of finding staff that would stay, he could finally turn the subject to Kili.

"So you noticed the busy fingers too?" Fili smirked.

"Pretty hard to miss," Thorin sipped on his avec. While Dwalin was a whisky person, the smokier the better, he had always preferred the Italian Grappa. "How far has it progressed?"

Fili shot him a measured look. "Neither is very open to discussing it."

"Sounds alarming."

Fili shrugged. "Tauriel is a rather private person, so I'm assuming she has never been one to talk, but Kili? He doesn't usually clam up. But there is Luka, and he could be the reason for their low profile."

Thorin nodded. "So what do you think then?"

Fili sighed and rolled his shoulders. "Are we talking about her or them?"

"Both?"

"She needed an income, and fast, and that's why she's been working for me. I think she would be an asset in the management. She certainly has the education for it. Her CV has a rather large hole in it though which she claims is because she worked in the family business. For personal reasons she no longer has any contact with them, but from what I understand and based on what I see with my own eyes, I think marketing and business strategy is what she was doing during those years. Did you know she's several years older than Kili? She recently turned thirty."

"I don't like that 'rather large hole in the CV'." Thorin scowled.

"It happens to people sometimes, you know that. It makes you wonder what possibly could be so bad that she no longer has any contact with her family. It's easy to spontaneously think abuse of some sort, but I have absolutely no idea. I have a feeling it's a good idea to handle it with a certain measure of delicacy."

"I might have to dig around," Thorin reminded him and took another sip of the Grappa.

"Have you considered what would happen if you found something you don't like and approve of?" Fili was calm but there was an annoyed undercurrent in his voice. Fili had always sided with his brother, even when he didn't approve of what Kili was doing.

"Which leads us to 'them'." Thorin gazed sternly at Fili.

"They caught sight of each other in May but then Clapham happened and Kili backed off. I thought it was history until a few weeks ago when I discovered by chance that they were seeing each other. It completely threw me since I know he and Luka have had one of their periods when they've seen each other a lot again." Fili shook his head. "Tauriel and Luka have been friends since she started working for me and if anything, those two have only grown closer lately."

"I think Kili genuinely likes her, but the whole situation is odd and I have no idea what's going on since he has been avoiding me."

Thorin grunted.

"And now you're going to let Dwalin loose," Fili concluded curtly, unable to hide his displeasure.

"I should. I can't afford to let anything slip us by. It could mean the difference between life and death, and you know it." Thorin drilled his eyes into Fili's, doing his utmost to stress just how serious this was.

"Do you really think she's tied to the Whites?" Fili asked incredulously.

"A woman that age with a spotty past shows up here as that twenty-five year old feud starts to come to life again and takes a job at your place. Now she has wormed herself into your brother's bed too. That does not strike you as suspicious at all?" Angrily he lifted the glass, took a mouthful of the drink, and clenched his teeth, letting the stinging alcohol roll in his mouth.

"You missed one detail. She has a bedsit in Mum's house," Fili told him tartly.

Thorin nearly spat the Grappa he was about to swallow onto a passing cousin.

"Uncle, if they wanted to plant a mole, they'd make sure she had a reasonable CV, not missing five years," Fili said calmly. "Besides, she's from East End. You know the Whites have no friends there."

"Neither do we," Thorin said coldly.

Fili's face blackened. "Oh for fuck's sake! Stop seeing threats everywhere," he hissed.

"I'd not call the Wards a threat, but friends they are not."

Fili arched his eyebrows but didn't offer any comment.

"I'll have a word with Kili," Thorin sighed.

"No, you won't. _I_ will have a word with Kili. I am, aside from possibly Mum, the only one who can talk to him about this without any drama coming out of it. I'll keep an eye on Tauriel too, if that can convince you to not wake the dragon." Fili threw a long look across the room at Dwalin.

Thorin gnashed his teeth, but nodded. It was a more careful approach and perhaps not such a bad idea at the moment.

…

Fili circled around for a while, gathering his thoughts. Ward. He hadn't made the connection before but now he was wondering. Tauriel's last name was Ward and she was from East End. Just how many well educated women with that name, from that part of London, having worked for a successful family business could there be? He had almost bitten into his tongue to keep his mouth shut and not say anything in front of Thorin. Though she wasn't a threat as such, Fili couldn't imagine Thorin would approve. This could be shaping up to becoming a bloody Romeo and Juliet.

He was itching to pull out his phone and search her name, but he decided to speak with Kili first. If he knew something, Fili would rather hear it from him than find out through a Google search.

He finally managed to catch Kili without it looking too conspicuous and suggested sneaking outside for some cancer-inducing indulgence. They quickly disappeared from the family gathering down the back stairs.

"I'm trying to stop really," Kili said as he lit his cigarette and dropped down on a flipped-over wine crate, leaning his elbows on his knees.

"Going well, I see," Fili returned dryly.

"No," Kili scowled.

"Now why would you want to quit?"

"Oh, I don't know? Cancer, COPD, heart attacks, teeth issues. . . " Kili's voice was dripping with sarcasm.

"You've known this all along."

"Sure. Which is also why I'm only smoking a few cigarettes a day now. Been cutting down since Christmas." Kili smirked. "You were trying to link this to Tauriel, weren't you?"

Fili shrugged. "She doesn't smoke. Non-smokers usually don't like cigarettes. They're funny that way."

"She doesn't like me smoking, no."

Fili studied Kili through the veil of smoke he created, wondering how the hell he was supposed to approach the subject of Tauriel.

With an annoyed gesture, Kili sighed. "I saw you talking to Thorin and I could tell it was about me. What now?"

"I hope I won't hurt your feelings, but you only have a supporting role in this drama." Fili paused and got rid of the building ash on the cigarette by flicking his thumb on the filter. "Tauriel's last name is Ward." He looked at Kili and squinted.

"It is." Kili's reply was carefully guarded.

"She's from East End."

"That she is," Kili agreed, focussing on his cigarette.

"Come on Kili. You know what I'm after."

Kili pressed the heels of his hands over his eyes, breathed out the smoke he had inhaled, and then let his hands drop. "Yes, Fili. It's _that_ Ward family."

"Anything more you care to tell me?"

"We have not talked about her family or why she isn't on speaking terms with them. I'm waiting for her to bring it up."

"But you know she's _that_ kind of a Ward?"

"Google is your friend, Fili. She had a top position within the company. It's well-known and if you search her name you will find everything you need to know about her professional career. You should give her a job in the office instead." Kili nodded at the stairs to the office. "With her up there you'd probably have a chain with your concept within a couple of years. Ward's expansion is her work."

"Fuck." Fili clenched his teeth and scowled.

Kili only arched his eyebrows at his brother.

"Uncle is going to throw a fit."

"Probably, yeah." Kili nodded.

"And you're just sitting there, not batting an eyelash at this?"

"Truthfully? I don't care about genealogy. I would have gone after her even if she had the best family relations in the known world and were in pole position to become the next CEO."

Fili gaped at Kili. "When did it become this serious?"

"Wednesday two weeks ago."

"Stop joking around." Fili made an irritated gesture with the hand holding the cigarette.

"I'm not," Kili replied coolly.

"And Luka?"

"What about him?"

Fili gestured vaguely again. "You've been seeing each other a lot this summer."

"Long story short: you know how that works." Kili looked at his hands and tapped the cigarette, and the ash fell to the ground.

"It's as simple as that? Even with Tauriel?" Fili couldn't hide his disbelief. Kili only nodded.

Fili licked his lips. "You just put me in a very awkward position."

"What's so awkward about it? Thorin is suspicious, but he's always like that. Always expecting the worst. While he doesn't like Tauriel's dad, it's just a plain case of we-don't-get-along. It's nothing to cause a drama about."

"Kili, why isn't she talking to her family?"

"I already told you I don't know."

"It was a rhetorical question. I defended her just now when Uncle and I were discussing this, pointing out the flaws in his reasoning, but I'm going to go devil's advocate on your arse now." Kili glared sourly at Fili but it didn't discourage him.

"It's not impossible she's no longer speaking with her family – _who runs a successful security business_ – because she has been drawn into the Whites' net. We know nothing of her life and it's not that difficult to pull people in if you want to. It could be a sweetened deal or it could be blackmail. Doesn't matter for the outcome. It would certainly be in the Whites' interest to have an insider in the fastest growing security company in London. She could have been suspected of such a thing, and they could have thrown her out or she could have left by choice. The Whites could have used that to put her in our path." He paused and aggressively took a drag on his cigarette.

"We'd feel sympathy for her, be unsuspecting. Defend her, just as I did half an hour ago. And why us? Because we're the closest family Uncle has. Thorin's strength has always been his prudence. His weakness? His loyalty and temper. And if they could take us out that would be a win on any day, because it would bring him out in the open, and they'd be _waiting_."

Kili bowed his head and glowered at the ground between his shoes.

"I know you don't want to listen to this because your trousers are on fire like I've never seen them before. That's bloody dangerous."

Fili studied his brother for a long while. It did not bring him any pleasure to do this, but he believed Kili needed to be cautioned. Sometimes he hated being Thorin's nephew – and the elder one, too. While it had enabled him to do what he loved on his own terms, there was a quite dark side to it. And he would never forgive himself if something happened to Kili because he had let something slide that he shouldn't have. To others it might seem like paranoia, but it was about life and death, and he wanted them both to survive.

"Do you believe in this yourself?" Kili's voice was barely audible.

With a shrug he inhaled some more smoke. "I'm not ruling it out." He shook his head.

"I don't want it to be true. I want it to be what you see is what you get. For some reason, some serious reason no doubt, she cut her ties and ran. She came here because she knew she'd be left alone, and because she wouldn't stand out. Coincidentally, Mum had the top bedsit available. She then went looking for something that would pay her bills while she figured out what to do with the rest of her life, and chanced on a barista position in my place. Then you strolled into her life, because how could you not since you're my brother? She's smart, has manners and that slightly androgynous look you're so fond of. Of course she'd catch your eye. And that's it. The entire story. If we hadn't been related to Thorin it's what I would have believed."

A long string of profanities left Kili's lips.

"Want to get pissed?"

"It's fucking Sunday."

"Hasn't stopped you in the past."

"Dori has pretty much had it with 'my airs' as he calls it."

"Dori says a lot of things."

"He's also the one with the money bag."

"He can't do anything without Thorin's approval, surely you know that?"

Kili frowned and looked up at Fili. "Why would he need Thorin's approval?"

Fili hesitated, looking at him with a raised eyebrow. "You don't know?" Fili's laughter was joyless. "Thorin owns Dori's arse. Dori is just a front man for the legal side of Thorin's business empire."

Pale and grim Kili darted his eyes around the yard and then his stare went back to Fili. "The block of flats I'm living in, it's a private development. Does Thorin own that as well?"

Fili hesitated for a fraction of a second. "Yeah. . . It's why your rent is that low. I thought you knew that at least."

"I had absolutely no idea," Kili replied with clenched teeth.

"I didn't comment because while I didn't want to even accept that from Uncle, there's nothing illegal about it. The job is decent and the flat is nice, but none of it is excessive nor is it tied to anything unlawful. It's what most would accept from their family."

"I would never have accepted it if I had known." Kili heaved himself up on his feet and killed the cigarette by stepping on it. "I know a place." His voice was without inflection.

Fili couldn't help smirking. "Of course you do."

Fishing out his phone from a pocket, he gave Fili a defiant look, and the blond nearly winced. That look he was familiar with and it usually led them to all sorts of irresponsible behaviour.

"You're not going to be functional for two days after this. Just for your information." Kili tapped on his phone and put it to his ear.

…

Thorin's phone made the discreet noise alerting him that he had received a text message. He opened the message, which turned out to be from Fili, read it, and closed his eyes.

Sun, Aug 9, 2015, 4:29 PM

_Sorry. There was drama. Call you in a couple of days._


	8. Chapter 8

_August, 2015_

Tauriel was having her break, sitting in her usual spot on the stairs in the backyard, when Fili arrived on his motorcycle, parked it and strolled towards the office. He eyed her carefully. Kili had not been joking when he had warned him there would be severe suffering and he knew Kili had been non-communicative after they had gone separate ways Monday mid-morning. He had most likely felt just as awful as Fili had. It had been unlicensed and illegal, loud, and with people Fili hadn't seen in quite a while – for which there had been a good reason.

He could easily imagine how Tauriel felt about Kili suddenly vanishing from the face of the earth for several days and he wished he could explain. In hindsight it was clear his devil's advocate scheme had backfired spectacularly. It had not cautioned Kili. Instead it had made them both look like unreliable idiots. Facing Tauriel now, he couldn't believe he had even concocted such a scenario. He was worse than Thorin.

She scooted silently to the side to let him pass, only sending him a passing glance and a nod. With a deep sigh he stopped.

"I'm sorry Tauriel."

She glanced up at him briefly. "What for?"

"This is all my fault." He made an aimless gesture with his helmet. "Kili going missing."

She didn't look back up. Fili turned and sat down next to her on the same step, and unzipped his jacket and loosened his scarf.

"The revelation of who you are didn't go down very well. . . " Kili was right, he thought. He was just as much a coward as his brother. Possibly worse, because this was a very serious matter. Much more serious than asking a girl for her phone number.

Her head whipped up and she stared at him with wide eyes. "Did you look me up?"

"I didn't. Kili did." He smiled at her, trying to give some reassurance. "He doesn't care, but others do." Drawing a deep breath he continued, "There were other things. You're not the only one with an interesting family Tauriel. We have a very headstrong uncle who has taken it on himself to take care of us, and in theory that's a nice thought. It's just that we don't really want to have anything to do with him outside the casual meet and greet."

Fili snorted. "Sounds callous, but we have good reasons. Our uncle knows this and has because of it not been entirely truthful towards Kili." He glanced at Tauriel who watched him with a steady gaze. "I think it's best to let Kili talk about the details."

With a bleak smile he went on explaining. "Kili was furious. I don't think I understood how angry he was at first. I thought he was just. . . you know, wanted to let off some steam. It got a bit worse than that. We have a history of going overboard when we want to. And we did."

She nodded stiffly. "There's been a lot of whispering going on."

"I can imagine," he nodded. "The fault is mine. I should not have let him go off like that."

She looked down at the empty plate she was balancing in her lap. "You know, I can use logic. When he went silent on Sunday I wondered about that, but it could have been anything from the battery going dead to his losing his phone or whatever. I thought it was odd that he didn't get in touch with me all Monday but as I came in yesterday and heard that you had done the same disappearing trick. . . I put two and two together. Well, Luka offered some insight too." She smiled and looked up.

"I'm a bit peeved that he didn't even send me a message telling me that he would go off the radar, but I have mostly been worried. It's new after all, us seeing each other. There could be any number of reasons why it happened. I don't jump into conclusions. And now I know."

Fili considered her for a moment. "You're not going to stay here for much longer, are you?"

With red cheeks she looked away.

"Knowing what you've done before, you must be pining to get out of here."

"I have been sending out some applications." Her voice was quiet but firm.

He nodded. "How would you feel about a marketing position here?"

At first she sat very still, her eyes nailed to a spot on the wall next to her, then she faced him, looking like she was gauging his sincerity. "You're looking to expand?"

"I am. We're firmly established here now and have worked out the kinks and earned us some recognition. If I'm to expand, now is the time." To his satisfaction he noticed that she couldn't keep a small smile from forming.

"I don't know much about the restaurant business though. It's something completely different from security," she pointed out.

"It'll come. You already have some insight, seeing it from the bottom. Though it's not been for long, it's more than most who apply for such a position have. Besides, you'd not be alone. I have more than enough experience with the finer points of running a place such as this."

"I'm not going to expand your company for fourteen K per annum though," she said pointedly.

Fili laughed. "No, I wasn't expecting you to."

She gave him a measured look. "Forty-three. I do have a master's and six years' experience after all, but because I don't have any official recommendations I really can't take full advantage of the fact that I was the one who built the brand Ward Security and was behind their expansion." She smirked. "And I'm sleeping with your brother. So. You get a discount."

Fili sputtered and coughed. "That's. . . one way to negotiate a salary."

She shrugged. "My break is over," she informed him. "Think about it, yeah?" She pushed herself up and started to descend down the steps.

"Tauriel." She stopped and half-turned, looking up at him. "I don't have to think. I know the statistics for these jobs already. Did my research." He smirked. "It seems we have an agreement."

Her face lit up with a radiant smile. "Brilliant!" The smiled dimmed slightly. "Thank you. I'm really glad."

"We'll discuss the details tomorrow. You'll be in for a late shift, yeah? Come in an hour early and we'll sit down and sort it out."

She nodded. "I will. See you then."

He watched her continue down the steps and disappear inside. When the door closed behind her, he dug out his phone to call Kili.

o.o.o

Already before there was a knock on her door she heard the creak in the stairs, alerting her that someone was seeking her. It was not Dis' rapid steps, though this someone avoided the worst creaks just as she did. This was a person familiar with this house and there were only so many to choose between who did. Her eyes went to the phone and she quickly picked it up to have a look at it. No one had sent her any messages.

Dropping her phone and the book she was reading, she smoothly got on her feet. As they touched the floor boards the anticipated knock came and she crossed the distance to the door and opened it. Outside on the landing stood Kili, looking a bit pale and serious, but otherwise he appeared to be his usual self.

"Since I know where you live, I thought I should come and see you. Apologising never works very well on the phone," he said quietly.

She leaned her head against the door frame and peered at him. "Dis let you in?"

With a slightly embarrassed and lopsided smile he nodded. "Turns out she is quite well informed about my private life. I think I know whose neck I'm going to wring."

Tauriel's eyes widened and she glanced in the direction of the stairs. "She hasn't said a word to me."

"That's different. It's none of her business whom her tenants are seeing."

"That's splitting hairs, and you know it. You're her son."

He smiled. "Mum can be discretion personified. Can I come in?"

She nodded and stepped aside, closing the door behind him. He turned around and looked sincerely at her.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you I would disappear. I really should have."

"I admit I was a bit worried. I wasn't at work on Monday so I didn't know Fili was missing too, or I would have understood earlier what might be going on."

He nodded looking subdued. She wondered if he was still suffering from the aftermath of the Sunday debauchery, but decided that it couldn't possibly be any physical suffering.

"I know something happened. Not in any detail, but it didn't seem very pleasant. I would have appreciated knowing you'd be out of touch a while, but it's not the end of the world." She smiled encouragingly at him.

He nodded, still looking solemn and pale and she frowned. "So. . . you found out who I am," she said.

Drawing a deep breath he nodded. "That last name of yours. . . Knowing you come from East End, well, I had to find out more." Slowly he stepped close and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her into a hug. She leaned into it and hugged him back.

"You left a lot behind," he whispered and kissed her hair.

Unexpectedly the pain and the grief that she had managed to keep at bay the past months slammed into her with full force. Those simple words, merely stating a fact, broke down her defences completely and though she tried not to, she couldn't keep a sob from escaping. Then another one. His arms tightened around her and she hid her face in the fabric of his jacket, squeezing her eyes shut. It didn't help. Within moments she was crying with the force that only months of pent-up grief could induce.

At some point Kili led her over to her bed and sat her down. He quickly picked up a roll of paper and a glass of water, discarded his jacket and shoes, and then convinced her to curl up on the bed with him holding her.

When the tears finally ebbed out she felt like a wrung-out dishcloth, and her face felt raw and was swollen.

"You know," she whispered, "Dad was never easy to get along with. I got on better with my step-mum than him. But I never thought we'd end up in a situation where I couldn't accept his decisions. You don't want to know what the company has been involved in. . . Sudan. . . that was probably the worst. I almost threw up when I read about it." She paused and swallowed.

"And when I confronted him about it just. . . our people has been nothing more than ruthless mercenaries. And my brother, he has known all along and said nothing, did nothing. Completely siding with dad. I couldn't be part of that." She blew her nose.

"It's just that I do still love them," she whispered.

Kili sighed and stroked her hair. "Of course you do. But I must confess that I have no idea what's going on in Sudan."

"Oil. Exploitation of oil. It looks fine on paper if you don't know much about it. The whole thing was run by a Swedish company. You'd think that they, with their egalitarian reputation, would do things decently, but no. I feel sick just thinking about it. And I lent my name and work to _that_."

She felt him stiffen and his breath grew shallow but he didn't say anything. Slowly she worked herself around so she faced him and was surprised by the scowl on his face. He did not meet her eyes either.

Somewhat puzzled by his reaction, she said, "I couldn't have worked for change within the company. I have. . . had, a token share of the stocks. I would have needed a lot more to even shake things up a little, and it was clear I wouldn't be able to influence dad. Staying in such a situation was not an option." She swallowed. "If I were vengeful I would have contacted the Inland Revenue. I could destroy them, utterly and completely. Part of me wanted to, but I aim to be better than that."

Kili closed his eyes and breathed in hard. "Never in my wildest imagination did I see this scenario," he murmured. "And you're definitely sleeping with the wrong person."

She stared at him. "What do you mean?"

He opened his eyes and the scowl was gone, replaced with sadness. "Fili told you a bit about what happened on Sunday, didn't he?"

"He did. Not in any detail, but. . . " she replied.

"It didn't strike you as odd that there would be a negative reaction to your family connections?"

"Dad's not going to win any most-popular-man-of-the-year awards. He has a tendency to rub people the wrong way."

A fleeting smile curved Kili's lips. "Does the name Durin tell you anything?"

She went hot and cold at the same time as she saw the look on Kili's face. Her mind raced. Hold on to that gut feeling, Luka had said, when she mentioned Dwalin making her feel uneasy. Luka had tried to warn her off. He'd heard things, and that was before the Clapham shooting. Looking back, she was suddenly certain Dwalin was a Durin – and he was a cousin to Fili and Kili.

"You?" she breathed. "You're a Durin?"

"My mum, Dis, has a brother. Well, she had two, but one died twenty-five years ago, along with my dad and my granddad. That car accident I mentioned? I don't think it was a car accident, not anymore, but I don't know what actually happened." He pulled a deep breath again.

"Mum's brother, my uncle? I've mentioned him before. His name is Thorin and he's the head of the Chalk Farm Syndicate. And my family."

Tauriel could not believe her ears. What she heard would not process.

"Fili and I haven't got anything to do with the illegal part of the business. However, Fili's initial funding to his restaurant adventure came from Thorin. As far as I understand, it was a loan on very good terms for Fili, because my brother wanted it to be his own and not work for Thorin, even if it was a legal enterprise."

"It turns out I'm not as fortunate. I knew I was working for a cousin, but I assumed it was something similar to Fili's deal. I should have known better since it's an online gambling company. It also offers fast online loans. Among other things. It's legal, but my cousin is just a puppet. The real owner is my uncle."

"When I needed a new place to live in, this cousin suggested the house I'm currently living in, telling me I could get a flat with a decent rent because he knew the owner. Of course he knows the owner. It's Thorin. And it was on his suggestion too, since he knew I'd not take any offers directly from him. And as the gullible idiot I am, I bought it, hook, line, and sinker."

"We're constantly juggling that part of our lives. Fili seems to be better at it and I think it's because he has some visions for himself and has set goals. I've mostly been. . . floating around. Showing up for a not particularly demanding job, spending my money whenever I could. . . Just being lazy."

"I suppose you could say that Thorin has been taking care of me, making sure I have a job that pays well, though not too well to raise any suspicions, that I live in a decent place, again not too posh nor cheap or I'd immediately know he was behind it. . . And he has now turned his eyes on you. Because you could potentially be a threat not only to me, but to him as well."

"I'm sure what's going on here can't be compared to the things that have happened abroad, but my uncle is quite ruthless. There's also the ever-present risk of death." He sighed.

"We're Thorin's closest family. People could get ideas. To be honest, it was a really dumb thing I did on Sunday when I dragged Fili with me. In particular since the people we were seen with are not people we should be associated with if we want to keep any rumours about 'crown princes' at bay."

Reaching up he caressed her cheek. "If you broke with your family for those reasons. . . I'm not a good choice if you want to steer clear of moral ambiguity. And I'm not safe to be around either. I had decided I should stay away from you after the shootings but. . . I convinced myself it'd be fine. After Sunday. . . I don't think it is. Clapham has not been avenged yet." He swallowed. "It was selfish to come back to you."

She arched her eyebrows at him. "Fili is no safer and I just accepted a management position in his company."

He nodded and sighed. "I think he'd understand if you told him you can't do it based on what I have told you."

"Why didn't he say anything?" she asked. This was pretty important information, and she couldn't help being annoyed.

It wasn't possible to duck his head, but he did his best to do just that. "Because he's trying to build a life away from all this. We can't change who we are related to, but he has done his best to be his own master."

"And yet he's making use of Dwalin's services, and something tells me he's not on the legal side." She knew she was being unfair to Kili when she said that. He had no control over that situation and this was something she should direct to his brother. She just couldn't hold it back though.

"I suspect that's one of the conditions to get the loan. Again, I think Thorin sees it as taking care of us. Making certain things stay calm according to his standards and that we stay physically safe." He replied honestly and dutifully without any defensiveness.

With a shuddering sigh Tauriel closed her eyes. "I just wanted it to be simple." The bed shifted under her as Kili moved around and she felt his lips pressing a kiss on her forehead.

"Me too." The regret in his voice was quite palpable.

"How did you feel about finding out about your job and the flat?" She opened her eyes and met his.

"Why do you think I nearly drowned in a vat of Stoli the other day? Well. That and a few other things."

Her mouth firmed. She could easily imagine what "other things" he was talking about. No wonder he had been floored for so long.

They were both silent as the minutes dragged on. Tauriel tried to think rationally about how to handle this information and what she should do, but it was not going well. In particular since Kili was there, so close, not speaking, not trying to excuse anything or plead his case.

About fifteen minutes passed in silence. Then he sat up, calmly, and started climbing out of her bed. He located his shoes and his jacket and sat down on the edge of the mattress to put on the shoes. She quickly shot up and put her hand on his arm, and he turned his head to look at her.

"So you're just going to leave? Not another word?"

"I don't think I can say more now. I came here to apologise, and I have. You also now know what happened and why. I don't want to pull you into this. It's wrong and it's dangerous."

"Oh what a fine and unselfish decision of yours," she said tartly. She was quickly tiring of this idea of moral corruption and threat that he appeared to exaggerate for some reason.

"Yes, it is, because I don't want to push you into anything questionable, nor do I want you to end up in the cross-hairs," he said with a steely voice.

His words really disturbed her. Even if there were dangers and ethical issues to consider she reserved the right to be the one to make decisions for herself. In her opinion it seemed more like he was trying to convince himself he should dump her than anything else.

"You do not get the right to make decisions on my behalf," she said coldly.

"You want me to try to persuade you these things mean nothing? That it's going to be all right somehow?"

"It would at least show you don't want this to end."

"I know you're going to reject me. Even if you hadn't been working for a security company, you're smart enough to realise that I'd put you at risk if we were to continue to see each other. I'm not going to humiliate myself and beg for the sake of drama."

"What if I had no intention of rejecting you? You're doing all the rejecting yourself, not me!" For a long while they stared at each other until Kili's eyes flickered away and his chin sank towards his chest.

"All I want to do is to tackle you back into bed, ignoring sensibility and logic. To hell with everything. But it's my usual reaction and I should stop and grow up."

She lifted her hands and put them on either side of his face and nudged him to look up. When he reluctantly did, she leaned forward and kissed him, then coaxed him along with her as she fell backwards onto the mattress. He followed a bit clumsily, catching himself and moving awkwardly to maintain their contact, kissing her back, then pushed himself up to get back into the bed. Getting caught in the duvet he broke the kiss and with an annoyed grunt he pushed away the offensive bedclothes.

When he turned his attention back to her he hesitated for a beat, gazing down at her with a look on his face that was difficult to read.

"I heard something about tackling into bed and to hell with everything," Tauriel reminded him.

Kili snorted in response, still hesitating, which made her arch her brow challengingly at him.

"This is not a good idea," he murmured.

"It's a much better idea than the one you had on Sunday afternoon," she replied dryly. "You get more pleasure out of it, and I'd say it's more effective if you want to escape for a while, not to mention that there's no headache and nausea afterwards. Conclusion: the best idea you've had since Sunday morning."

A small smile curved his lips. "Those are some compelling arguments."

"Yet I still see precious little brazen behaviour."

Gripping the hem of her tee-shirt firmly, he pushed it up, revealing her belly, and began making patterns over her skin with his tongue. A bit startled by this unexpected move she breathed a laugh. With a grin she pushed her fingers through his hair, getting rid of the elastic holding it in check. Abruptly he stopped, caught her hands and sat up, pulling her along with him, tearing the shirt over her head and discarding the bra equally fast. Her back hit the mattress and his mouth was on hers a second later, their teeth clicking as they collided lightly.

To hell with everything indeed, she thought fleetingly as she caught the hem of his shirt with her hands and pulled it upwards, forcing him to break the kiss so she could pull it off. She couldn't say why but she was done with being rational and sensible. Kili couldn't be held responsible for what people in his family did either. Maybe there was a risk, but she trusted she would be able to handle any such threats. It would be fine, she was certain of it. She'd see to his, Fili's, and Dis' safety, and would help Fili and Kili to break away from the family clutches. If anyone knew how to do this, it was she.

But right in this moment, all of that was irrelevant and she pushed it away, focussing on Kili. Tomorrow she'd think about the rest.

…

There was only a faint hint of light in the evening sky when Tauriel padded into the dark kitchen, wrapped in her bathrobe, raking her fingers through her hair, trying to sort out the worst unruliness. She opened the fridge and reached for the milk when the light went on, making her jump. The milk escaped her hand and she scrambled to catch it before it hit the floor and to her surprise she managed to snag it just before it slipped out of her reach. Squinting a bit, she turned towards the entrance to the kitchen which revealed Dis.

"Oh, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to startle you," Dis said apologetically.

"I managed to avert a dairy disaster," Tauriel smiled, holding up the milk.

Dis chuckled. "Good. It's the worst, trying to clean up milk." She went past Tauriel who picked out a glass from the cupboard and filled it up with milk. Leaning her hip against the counter Tauriel carefully watched Dis as she raided the cook books.

"Fili has tattled, hasn't he?" Tauriel asked quietly, and with an uncertain voice.

"Fili is always tattling on his baby brother." Dis shot a small smile in Tauriel's direction, then continued to rummage around.

Tauriel slowly drank her milk.

"I admit it's a bit odd knowing he's here, back in his old room. Is he still up there now?" Dis asked casually.

Swallowing a mouthful Tauriel nodded. "Don't know if he's staying the night."

Dis shook her head and sighed. "Fili didn't need to say anything. I could tell where it would end when the lads were here for that Sunday lunch."

She gathered the books and turned towards Tauriel and considered her for a short moment. "If you haven't already, I recommend that you talk about your respective families."

Tauriel looked down at her milk, then raised her eyes and met Dis'. "We did this evening."

Dis nodded and glanced at Tauriel's messy mane. "Kili can be very persuasive when he chooses."

"I know. He did not turn on the charm this evening though."

"I'm glad to hear it." Dis looked genuinely relieved and smiled a little wider. "Well, I'd best go and hide with these." She lifted the books slightly for a moment and started for the entrance to the kitchen.

"This is quite awkward," Tauriel sighed and pushed her fingers through her hair again.

Dis stopped and tilted her head slightly as she peered at Tauriel. "Dear, I was eighteen when I had Fili. You think he came out of thin air?"

Tauriel looked nonplussed.

"Liam was a force of nature when he wanted to, and I was all too happy to be swept off my feet. That being mixed up with him probably wasn't the best decision I could have made didn't even occur to me." Dis chuckled.

"Liam and Frerin, one of my two brothers, were inseparable and they were always around the house. I had a crush on Liam for years. . . and then that magical summer happened. Everyone was dancing and it was such a fantastic summer – more like in the Mediterranean than England." She shrugged. "At the end of summer I was pregnant. Thorin was furious. Well, dad wasn't too happy either. We married in October. Fili was born in May and the year after, in March, Kili was born. Then Liam died."

A small smile tugged at her lips. "So you see, this is hardly a shocker. You're both adults after all. As long as I don't have to know all the details, I'm perfectly fine with your living a grown-up life." She resumed walking. "Good night."

Tauriel stood for a long while weighing the glass in her hand before she put it in the dishwasher and headed back upstairs. As she slipped back into bed she realised Dis must have known who she was all along. She hadn't expected Dis to look her up, but perhaps she had simply known – having recognised her in some way.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think I need to say something on the topics of guns here. Europe is nothing like the US when it comes to guns. In most countries there are strict gun laws, and not even the police can wave guns around as they please. There are plenty of items that the gun laws restrict the use of. You may not carry a number of things when in public spaces, like pepper spray or tasers. There are even some rings that would be picked from you if stopped by the police as they would be considered equal to knuckle dusters. 
> 
> But the worst you can do is of course to arm yourself with a gun. You may slip away with a fine if you carry something considered as less dangerous, but guns, that is a serious matter. You don't ever want to give away on the street that you're carrying anything or you'll have Old Bill coming down on you like a ton of bricks.

_August, 2015_

Kili and Tauriel woke up to slamming car doors and loud voices in the street. It was still dark outside and the alarm clock on Tauriel's stand winked 2:19 AM at them as they sat up. To Kili's surprise, Tauriel was immediately slipping out of bed noiselessly and crouching by the bed. She reached out and tore a gun-like object out from under the night stand.

"You have a gun?" he squeaked with wide eyes as he pushed himself up to get a better look at what she was doing.

"It's a multi-purpose taser," she explained quietly as she crossed the floor to the door.

"But they're illegal!" he hissed.

She made a hushing motion and scowled at him, then silently opened the door. Kili swallowed as he stared at her. It was a sight, he had to admit that. She wasn't wearing anything, only holding the taser, which looked quite a lot like a plastic toy gun on closer inspection. He already knew she had some exercise regime, but watching her he realised it wasn't for vanity's sake alone that she visited the gym and ran laps in Regents Park. She had been trained to handle dangerous situations, and not just in basic defence techniques.

Someone banged on the front door and a gruff male voice demanded entry, a voice that catapulted Kili out of bed.

"That's Thorin," he hissed and pulled his tee-shirt over his head as he was picking up the rest of his discarded clothes. "Something bad has happened. He'd never come like this otherwise."

Tauriel returned to the bed and quickly pulled on her clothes as well, pushing down the taser at the back of her trousers and pocketing something she pulled from the drawer. She looked up and met his searching eyes.

"I can use rubber bullets and pepper spray if necessary." She was all business and very calm, while he stood staring at her with wide eyes feeling slightly shaky. She paused when she caught the look on his face.

"Kili, I grew up in a family that has made security their business. Dad was an SAS officer so it was never a question whether or not we should use weapons when we could get away with it. Even if I have never taken part in any field operations I had to go through training. Dad insisted on it. Since I was so intimately involved in running the company, there was always a small risk for me personally; therefore I got the same training as our special units. I don't carry a proper gun. I would not do it. But I do have the taser which, if handled properly, is very effective." She paused. "I thought you of all people would expect it once you knew who I was."

He swallowed. "Tauriel, Mum kept us very much away from the shadier aspects of my family. Had I drifted that way, yes, I probably would know how to handle weapons and have some too, but I don't. It never occurred to me that it would be required of you."

They moved to the door and started descending the stairs. "The better I get to know Dis, the more I like her," Tauriel said absently as she listened downstairs. "But in this instant I think she may have made a strategic error."

As they came to the last landing before going down the last flight of stairs Tauriel hissed, "Stay behind me and if someone is too trigger-happy just drop down and hug the floor. No heroics." Slowly she pulled out the taser, quickly removed the cartridge at the front of it, and clicked the one she had pocketed in place. She continued onwards with the taser kept out of sight behind her.

Slowly they crept down the stairs and were met by a narrow-eyed individual with a pretty ridiculous rockabilly hairdo, aiming a MAC-10 at Tauriel's face. As he spotted Kili the gun came down immediately.

"Thorin!" he called. "Kee is here."

A moment later a large dark-haired male barrelled through the door to the reception room. Even if he hadn't been introduced by Rockabilly Hairdo, Tauriel would have guessed who he was. His likeness to Dis was quite obvious. Dis followed her brother, squinting at the light and looking pale.

"What has happened?" Kili asked and pushed past Tauriel who discreetly continued to hide the taser while she carefully followed him. Rockabilly Hairdo was observant though and the MAC-10 went back to being aimed at her.

"What are you holding in your hand?" he demanded sternly.

Tauriel glared at him, but she slowly brought out the taser gun, careful to not aim it at anyone.

"Who the fuck are you?" Rockabilly Hairdo growled.

"Apparently she's a representative of the Ward family," Thorin cut in, considering her and her weapon with a cold blue gaze. He cocked an eyebrow as his eyes landed on the taser. "Black cartridge? Rubber bullets. Wise, considering what could happen if you tase someone with a machine gun." He nodded. "Nice shiny equipment. Imported."

"It comes from the same source as your MAC-10's," she replied curtly.

Thorin nodded. "Ironic, isn't it?" He turned to Rockabilly Hairdo. "Nori, stop waving that thing around. She's not going to kill you." Turning to Kili he put his hand behind Kili's neck and pulled him in, leaning their foreheads together.

"I'm very relieved you're here." Straightening, though keeping his hold on Kili's neck, Thorin glanced up at Tauriel again. "Though I can't say I'm pleased with the company you're keeping."

Tauriel pushed down the taser at the back of her trousers again and crossed her arms, scowling back at him.

"Thorin, Fili is missing and you're choosing to comment on Kili's personal life?" Dis voice was as cold as her brother's eyes. "Where are your priorities?"

Thorin turned his head towards his sister. "I can't believe you didn't tell me!" he spat.

"Why would I? I have no part in your quarrels. Neither has Tauriel."

Tauriel could tell that this was not the first time these two had come to blows and Dis showed no sign of budging.

"She's a Ward! Kili is hardly here for the lively intellect and interesting conversation at two in the morning. In your fucking house!" Thorin's voice boomed through the space and Kili flinched and tried to tear himself away, but Thorin's grip hardened and Kili relented.

Coalescing from a dark corner Dwalin stepped forward, with his icy gaze on Tauriel. "I knew there was something not right about you lass. Too quick in your reactions. Tried to keep it hidden, did you? Your low profile did not fool me, you know. I saw your eyes. And that name. . . "

She tilted her head slightly as their eyes met. "If it's any comfort, you have bothered me since the moment I laid my eyes on you."

Dwalin flashed her an unfriendly grin. "I aim to intimidate."

Kili ducked and shot out his arm, hitting Thorin and freeing himself from his uncle's grip. He quickly retreated towards Tauriel, who slowly descended down the last steps.

Thorin sneered at Kili and then looked up at Tauriel where she had stopped, two steps up, giving her a height advantage. A small and unfriendly smile curved his lips.

"So there's a limit to what even Thranduil's children can stand from him," he said with a velvety voice. "What was it that sent you packing? Just his general lack of ethics, or was it something in particular? Because I know you left over a matter of principle."

"You hardly have the moral high ground between the two of you, so why would you care?"

"Oh, I find it fascinating that someone who is considered an _upstanding_ member of society has as much blood on his hands as I do." Thorin directed his gaze to Kili. "I take it you started seeing her despite knowing who she is?"

Kili just glared back at him.

"I have had enough of this!" Dis shouted. "You're idiots! Both of you!"

The silence that followed had a tang of injured pride, making Thorin and Dwalin look more like petulant boys rather than the middle-aged men they were.

"What's happened to Fili?" Kili asked, breaking the silence.

Thorin turned towards Kili, sighed and hung his head. "Your brother has gone missing. His motorcycle was found abandoned between the restaurant and his flat. We immediately went to find you and discovered that your flat had been smashed up."

Kili stared slack-jawed at Thorin, and then turned his head towards Tauriel. They traded a long look, and Thorin watched their silent communication. The difference between them was noticeable, with Tauriel upholding a calm façade even if her eyes betrayed concern, while Kili's emotions were plain for anyone to see.

"We had to make certain no one touches your mother," Thorin continued.

Dis huffed and shook her head.

"Dis, please," Dwalin began in a low pleading voice, a far cry from his previous grating tone.

"Don't you say another word. I chose to walk away when Liam was killed and my boys would have been safe if not for you and your constant interference! You're always making sure they are in your net somehow, under the pretence of helping! I know the talk, the jokes about the heirs. Feeding speculation, making life difficult for them. How many times do they need to tell you they don't want to be part of what you're doing? Yet you continue! I have no idea what brought on that horrible shooting in Clapham, but tell me this, was it worth it? Now when you know who's paying the price? All because you couldn't accept our choices! You fucking bastards!"

Dis words were clearly directed at both Dwalin and Thorin and both men stood stiffly listening to her angry outburst. Dwalin finally looked away but Thorin's gaze was firmly nailed at her, looking like he was about to erupt in violent anger.

"I have done everything for you," Thorin wheezed, revealing a distinct note of pain in his voice.

"Except leaving them alone," Dis retorted tiredly with tears brimming in her eyes.

Dwalin spun around and strode towards the entrance. "Nori. Outside," he ground out. Nori gave them one last look and then followed Dwalin, leaving Dis, Thorin, Kili, and Tauriel alone in the house.

Thorin closed his eyes and drew a deep breath. Tauriel slipped down the last steps, putting her hand briefly on Kili's upper arm as she went past him. He glanced at her and quickly reached out and caught her hand.

"I'm going to the kitchen," Tauriel explained with a soft voice. She looked over at Dis. "Would you like some tea?" she asked.

Dis smiled slightly and nodded. "Yes, thank you." She wrapped her arms around herself as if she suddenly felt cold. Kili let go of Tauriel's hand and went over to her, pulling her into his arms. She snorted and patted him on the arm.

"My little furnace," she murmured.

Thorin watched Tauriel disappear through the door. "Bring your mother to the kitchen, Kee," he said quietly.

Tauriel busied herself with making tea while keeping an eye on the other three as they entered the kitchen and slowly and awkwardly sat down by the kitchen island. The silence was like a heavy blanket over the room and no one seemed willing to break it. Tauriel gripped the worktop and closed her eyes, pulling a steadying breath, before she turned around and faced them, leaning against the worktop.

"Do you know anything else about Fili's disappearance?" she asked with a low and steady voice, her eyes firmly trained on Thorin.

"You keep your pretty little head out of this," Thorin grunted. Kili scowled and opened his mouth to speak, but closed it again when Tauriel caught his eyes and shook her head.

"My main achievement may have been Ward Security's company expansion, but don't for a moment think I don't know how the operations side of the business works. I have lived and breathed this my entire life." She angled her head as Thorin looked at her.

"I've always been good at analysis and strategy. Doesn't matter what kind of problem that needs solving."

Thorin considered her with an inscrutable look on his face a bit too long for comfort. "I don't like it."

"You don't need to like it. The important thing is that Fili is recovered, preferably alive and as unhurt as possible, wouldn't you agree?" Tauriel countered.

Thorin huffed. "He was blocked. Tyre marks suggests there were several vehicles used, forcing him to stop while blocking any escape routes. I can't imagine he willingly went with them. After that there are no traces. Possibly the cars will resurface but that won't help much since they're most likely stolen."

Tauriel nodded quietly.

"Doesn't sound very original," Tauriel said. "Fili's probably not being treated with any consideration but they want him alive. At least for now." She paused and gave Thorin a once over. "They want you out in the open."

Thorin arched his eyebrows. "They?"

She made an annoyed gesture with her hand and frowned. "Oh, stop pretending you don't know who picked up Fili and went looking for Kili. The contacts you have within the police, do they have any information?"

With a sneer Thorin shook his head. "For some reason this slipped under the radar."

Tauriel smirked. "Of course it did," she returned sarcastically. She turned back to the tea, which was ready to be served. Having put the teapot and mugs on the table she went to dig out some crackers. She sank down on a stool next to Thorin after she had raided the fridge for milk, cheese, and lemon curd.

"It's simple in its banality," Tauriel mused as she pulled out her phone and brought up Google maps. "Where was his bike found?" she asked and looked up at Thorin.

"Near Tufnell Park," Thorin replied.

"Fili lives in Highgate," Kili added with a voice just above a whisper.

"That explains the bike," she said and arched her brow. She quickly zoomed out and stared at the screen. "I suppose they took the A5 and then headed for Victoria," she mused quietly, sliding the map on her screen with her forefinger. She zoomed in on York Road, south of the river, and put the phone on the worktop, allowing everyone to see the screen.

"I wager it's around here." She followed the stretch of road on the screen with her index finger. "Easy access in and out, between Vauxhall Bridge and Wandsworth Bridge and right where the major road arteries from the south converge. Right in the middle of their heartland." She angled her head slightly and narrowed her eyes, then changed to satellite. "Homebase and Travelodge." She pointed at the DIY store and the hotel marked out on the screen. "Somewhere near there. A lot of cars and people coming and going even at odd hours."

She straightened and turned to Thorin. "Don't make it into a charge of the Light Brigade unless you want to commit group suicide and risk killing Fili at the same time."

Thorin clenched his teeth and glared at her. "I understand you don't like hearing these things from me but if you want to come out of this without carnage, please listen to me."

Thorin sighed and shook his head. "You must realise. . . You're a _Ward_."

"And you are the head of the Chalk Farm Syndicate. Don't think I enjoy this situation any more than you do." She sighed. "I don't want to see anyone dead. Let me make a few calls. I think bringing in some help here would be a good idea."

He guffawed and shook his head.

"This is no laughing matter," she said sharply. "I may have left the company and the relations may be a bit strained between me and my family, but they won't refuse me help. I have some means of persuasion." Her smile was all teeth and no warmth at all, just cold cunning.

"And why would you do that?" Thorin asked, jutting out his chin, not hiding his suspicion.

She turned to look at Kili who gazed back at her with a watery smile. Thorin sighed deeply.

"Go ahead." He sounded deflated. "Wards," he groused under his breath and shook his head.

Tauriel immediately reached for the phone on the worktop and strode into the conservatory, pressing it to her ear. The conversation was hushed and lasted a while. As she turned around towards the kitchen where Dis, Thorin and Kili were watching her, she squared her shoulders and raised her chin.

"My brother is coming," she announced.

…

Tauriel looked quite unrattled by what was going on in Dis' private apartment. It was impossible not to hear Dwalin where she and Kili sat on the bar stools in the kitchen. If the situation hadn't been so grave, Kili probably would have had difficulties keeping a straight face. It was, however, impossible to joke in this situation.

"Why? Why did it happen?" he asked quietly.

"I'd say that's plainly obvious," Tauriel replied and looked up. "You said it yourself. The attack in May would come back and bite you eventually. It was the foot soldiers who took the hit and there are always more of those. The actual family escaped unharmed – and your uncle pissed them off spectacularly."

"They don't need any other excuse than your being Thorin's nephews. I'm sure they're paranoid enough to suspect that either of you will take over eventually but I just don't think it mattered in this situation."

There was a bit of noise by the entrance to the house and they both turned their attention to the reception room. Luka stepped into it, being ushered inside by one of Dwalin's most trusted muscle men, one well-known to the people working at 37. Dwalin's booming voice had gone quiet and instead his heavy gait announced that he was coming upstairs.

Luka quickly scanned the space and looked into the kitchen. His eyes widened as he spotted Tauriel and Kili. Dwalin entered the reception room and positioned himself by the window to the front of the house. He cast an eye at the garden and the street then aimed his glare at the kitchen.

Luka ignored Dwalin's presence and walked into the kitchen. He rounded Tauriel and gave her arm a light squeeze. Then he turned to Kili, put his hand on Kili's shoulder, and slipped it down his back. "I'm so relieved to see you well," he said, concerned and relieved, all at once. "When I heard about Fili I thought they had gone for you as well. I'm so sorry about all of this." His hand slowly moved back up to Kili's shoulder, in a gentle soothing motion.

"They did," Kili said. "I just wasn't home." His eyes went to Tauriel.

"This used to be your home and your mother still lives here. I'm surprised they didn't come here too," Luka pointed out.

"They were pressed for time and smashing up flats does make people take notice. Apparently they weren't sure where he was, and careening around the neighbourhood looking for him would not be a smart thing to do." Tauriel picked up her glass of milk and drank.

In the reception room Dwalin was approached by Nori. After a brief conversation they both left, but not before Dwalin had sent a long look at Kili, Tauriel, and Luka, not bothering to hide his contempt.

"Oaf," Luka sneered when he was gone.

"Not really," Tauriel said absently and checked her phone. "He doesn't like you or me and he doesn't understand this." She made a circular motion between them.

Luka shrugged lightly. "Not much to understand."

Tauriel glanced up from her phone and gave him a fleeting smile. "Kili hasn't actually officially broken things off with you, and neither have you with him."

With a sigh Luka shook his head. "That's not the point. It shouldn't matter what he has said or not, officially or otherwise."

"I am present. I'd just like to point that out," Kili grumbled.

Both Luka and Tauriel looked at him, smiling in similar ways.

"Stop. Just. . . stop."

Tauriel reached out and put her hand on his forearm. "We're not making light of the situation. You'd think Dwalin would recognise the advantage of people being on friendly terms. He's apparently struggling a bit with that."

"When do you think your brother shows up?" Kili asked quietly and moved his hand so he could catch hers.

"They're on their way." Tauriel eyed her phone again.

"They?"

She looked up at Kili. "You didn't expect him to come alone, did you?"

Kili's eyes went to the reception room. "Do Uncle and Dwalin know?"

"Why do you think Dwalin made such a noise downstairs just now?" She went back to her phone.

Kili didn't answer but turned his head back to look at her. Luka studied Tauriel intently too. "What's so interesting with that phone of yours?" he asked.

"Keeping track of them."

Kili tilted his head and frowned. "I thought you didn't have any contact at all with them."

"I don't. But I still have the ability to track a transponder, given that I have the correct information sent to my phone." She looked up. "They'll be here within minutes."

She pulled her hand out of his grasp, slipped down from the stool, and left the kitchen. Luka shuddered as he saw the taser gun still at her back.

"Not in a million years," he sighed. "I feel like such a fool. I tried to warn her because I thought she'd be at risk. . . "

Kili smiled bleakly. "Well, you didn't actually know who she is. I did, and still I didn't expect this. She keeps saying she's not one for actual field operations, but she's been acting like one all morning. When did you find out anyway?"

"Dwalin told me when he called. There will be a meeting later this morning with all the managers to explain the situation," Luka paused, hesitating slightly, then stepped closer and pulled Kili into a hug. "I'm so relieved you're unharmed. I just hope we get Fili back alive and in one piece," he whispered.

"I think I want to see this brother of Tauriel's," Kili murmured and Luka let him go with a nod. Together they headed towards the entrance, stepping outside in the early morning light. Tauriel stood with her feet firmly planted on the ground at the open gate to the garden, her phone in hand, while keeping track of everything around her.

She wasn't alone, of course. Dwalin's men were all over the property and outside on the street. Just as Kili and Luka reached her she resolutely pushed the phone into her pocket and looked over at one of the men across the street. Nodding at him, she turned to look to the right, down the curving street.

Within seconds several cars came around the bend, parking outside the house. There already was a large number of cars parked on the street and with these new arrivals the entire street was blocked off. The doors opened and people started climbing out. One of them stood out, with his white-blond hair, fine-cut face, creepy blue eyes and the fact that he instantly froze as he saw Tauriel. She was as still as he was when she met his stare.

The spell was broken and they both hurried towards each other. He caught her in a tight embrace as she wrapped her arms around his neck, and for a long while they stood together, having some sort of whispering conversation. When they finally separated the blond had a slight sheen of tears filming his eyes and the sternness was replaced with a warm look and a not-quite smile.

"Looks like someone missed his sister," Luka mumbled through the corner of his mouth.

"She cried her eyes out only yesterday so it's certainly mutual," Kili returned.

They watched the two siblings slowly come towards them and the house, with the blond drilling his eyes into Kili.

"I don't think he likes me," Kili murmured.

"He doesn't know you."

"I don't think he wants to either." Kili dipped his eyes to the ground and sighed.


	10. Chapter 10

_August, 2015_

The house was cleared of everyone but the senior members of the syndicate and the Ward siblings and their company.

"I suppose there's no actual need for an introduction," Tauriel opened matter-of-factly.

Thorin, whose eyes rested on the blond, said, "You look more like your mother than your father, Legolas. Well, aside from the colours."

"So people tell me." Legolas' voice was without inflection. "Let me make one thing clear. I'm here because my sister asked me. I'd walk through anything for her sake. Wasting time doesn't serve any purpose so I suggest we focus on the task at hand."

Dwalin looked particularly surly but he didn't speak. Legolas drew a steady breath. "They are expecting you to storm south. In fact, they are depending on it, so you do not wish to play into their hands."

Dwalin opened his mouth but like a cobra, Thorin shot him an icy glare. He closed his mouth again and averted his eyes.

"I have called in a couple of favours to deal with this situation. I'm not going to reveal from whom, but suffice it to say, their speciality is of great use to us. They have set to work on locating Fili and will be surveying the location once they've found him. When we have that data we go in and shut this spectacle down accordingly. Silently and efficiently. Whatever avenging you're after will have to happen at another time and place. This is purely a rescue operation."

Legolas let his gaze wander from face to face until it came to rest on Thorin. There wasn't much to see in Thorin's face, which was somewhat surprising. Legolas had expected more _sturm und drang_ and though it was clear Thorin certainly had a temper, he didn't let it rule him.

"My main priority in this situation is to get Fili out," Thorin said quietly.

"Good. Then we do so. In the meantime while we wait for the information we need, rest and food is advisable. No alcohol or other substances. We move only during the dark hours."

Thorin conceded with a nod. "We should relocate to a place better suited for this."

"By all means." Legolas inclined his head.

Thorin looked at Dwalin who replied with a curt nod, then he strode out of the room. The rest of the syndicate members followed and Legolas nodded at his people to join them.

o.o.o

Fili frowned, wondering why there was such a racket. As he moved, a sharp, churning pain shot through his torso, making him wince. For the life of him he couldn't remember what had happened, which certainly was a cause for concern. Had he crashed with the bike? Slowly he opened his eyes.

He was in a room with no windows, looking like an abandoned workshop of some sort. One movable lamp, the sturdy kind used by carpenters and builders, sat just inside a door facing the wall. This was fortunate since the only other light was a tiny sliver visible under the door. So it was day, he absently concluded.

His mouth was dry and he tried to swallow with little success.

Naturally he understood his situation even if he couldn't recall how it had happened. They must have hit him hard. He hoped he hadn't been unconscious the entire time because that would mean he was in serious trouble. Very carefully he moved again and ignored the pain in his torso.

It was bad, in particular in the abdominal area, but what turned out to be even worse was what felt like a white hot iron spearing his brain when he moved his head. Nausea followed immediately and he groaned unwillingly. How? He had been wearing his helmet, he knew that. Had they removed it to kick him in the head? Bastards.

For a minute he stayed still waiting for the worst to ebb away. Then he opened his eyes again, scanning the surroundings in the hope of finding something to drink. To his relief there was a bottle next to the cot he was on.

He steeled himself and started moving again, reaching out for the bottle. Gritting his teeth he managed to keep quiet while picking it up. His breathing was heavy though and sweat broke out on his forehead. He opened the bottle and sipped, careful to not swallow too much, just take the edge off of his thirst. If he drank too much in one go he knew he risked throwing it all up again. The nausea increased and he eased himself down and breathed slowly.

The racket that had woken him up started again, cutting through his brain. There had to be a construction site nearby, he concluded. Gingerly he moved his hands over himself to assess his condition, but he couldn't feel anything out of the ordinary. He was in his clothes, even the leather jacket and scarf, though the jacket had been opened and the scarf untied. Moving his toes around revealed that he was still wearing his boots. Everything was gone from his pockets though, which hardly was a surprise.

He allowed his hands to slip down on the cot while he rested for a while, trying to think rationally about the situation. Faint glimpses of what had happened started to come back to him, much to his relief. The cars, being forced to stop and come along and the drive through London. They hadn't bothered to hide where they were taking him, but that hardly mattered as he had no means to contact the outside world.

He wasn't entirely sure where he was but it was just south of the river, near Clapham Junction by his estimation, and he had seen the Travelodge signs just before they had turned into a side street. They must have beaten him up after arriving here, but he couldn't recall any details about it.

Thorin materialised in his mind and Fili's breathing sped up. He knew his uncle and he'd be crying for blood the moment he found out. It would end in disaster and there was nothing Fili could do to stop it.

Another memory surfaced. They had not found Kili. There had been a hushed but heated conversation of which he had caught snippets. He smiled. Kili was safe. In hindsight the unorthodox situation, which only seemed clear to Kili, Luka, and Tauriel, had probably been the reason for them not chasing after Kili when they couldn't find him in his flat. Fili vowed not to breathe another word of complaint in the future. Assuming he got out of this alive, of course. That was not a certainty.

The pain had dulled to a bearable level and he relaxed. The best thing he could do was to stay still, drink slowly every now and then and rest. Hopefully he'd soon feel better. The noises from the nearby building silenced and eventually Fili fell asleep again.

The light started fading under the door.

o.o.o

Legolas studied Tauriel where she sat, nursing a mug of tea while staring out at the garden where the blue shadows of evening gradually were descending. After the early morning's bustle everything had gone quiet. The senior staff at Fili's company had returned to work after the meeting informing them of Fili's absence. The others had, like Thorin had suggested, relocated. Only a few well-hidden individuals had remained, keeping the house under surveillance, prepared to take action if needed.

During the day information had trickled in. Tauriel's hunch had been correct – almost eerily so – and the surroundings had been thoroughly studied both by using the digital means available and by sending people down there. The fact that there was a hotel next door had made everything much easier. Amateurs, Legolas had sneered. Once they had decided on the details of the operation, Legolas had opted to spend some time with his sister. He'd join the others once it was dark and time to head south.

He glanced at Kili, slumped in a chair next to Tauriel and fast asleep. About half an hour earlier he had finally dozed off. Not that he had been saying or doing a lot during the long hours they had spent together this day, but somehow there was an intensity radiating from him that set Legolas' teeth on edge. He had expected a much more vocal and quarrelsome person but aside from a short outburst aimed at Dwalin at one point, he had been nothing like Legolas had expected, not least towards his sister. Theirs had been a quiet and warm interaction, both of them completely ignoring Thorin's glower and Legolas' own less-than-pleased looks.

"Why don't you ask your questions? I know you have them," Tauriel said quietly, cutting into his thoughts.

Legolas turned his head to face her. Her eyes were resting steadily on him, mirroring his calm surface.

His face contorted into disbelief. "You and him?" he blurted.

Her brow rose slightly. "We met almost immediately after I moved here, but until recently we've only been running into each other at work."

"Did you know who he was?"

She shook her head. "And he didn't know who I was."

Legolas sighed and rubbed his eyes with his fingers. "How is it even possible?"

She shrugged. "I'm not in the habit of Googling every single person I come across, and neither is Fili or Kili, even if Kili eventually did look me up a couple of weeks ago. Fili didn't react to my last name when he hired me, and they have their father's name, Whelan."

"I was thinking more along the lines of what the chances are for something like this to happen. They are certainly not the only people in this area." He sighed. "Happy?"

"I think it's a bit too early to say. We. . . get along." They gazed at each other for a long while.

"I can't imagine his uncle will accept it," Legolas finally said.

She shrugged and traced the rim of the mug with her index finger. "He's not without means to blackmail Kili if he wants to, but I wonder if he would. It could potentially cause a rift that would be keenly felt."

"We have just lived through something similar," Legolas said quietly. "And while I would have come here for your sake regardless, the resources at my disposal are due of the power you still have. You could destroy us."

Tauriel ducked her head.

"Sis, I'm impressed." He smirked. "So many have tried to bring Dad to his knees, but you're the only one who has succeeded."

"I didn't want to do that." Her voice was barely audible.

"No, if that had been your plan, we'd be down already. I think, though, that Dad may have some new-found respect for you, so this is not all bad. And who knows where all of this ends eventually? Thorin won't live forever. Neither will our dad. Keep that in mind."

Tauriel's eyes were guarded. "I thought you were firmly on Dad's side when it comes to the business side of things."

"I have had some time to think."

She nodded.

"I think I'll leave myself. I have been looking into a few opportunities." He smiled thinly. "Haven't told Dad yet though."

"Are you sure?"

"I am. I should have done it years ago." They were silent for a while again. "What about you then?"

"Fili, having found out who I am, asked me yesterday to do for him and 37 what I have already done for our company. I had left out those years out on the CV when I applied for the barista position, explaining the situation without giving any names. Kili, who then Googled me, told Fili, who came straight to me with the offer."

Legolas drew a deep breath. "That's. . . rather defiant. Taking Kili's side like that."

"I think he would have asked me regardless." She smiled. "It seems revolt is in the air."

" _If_ this operation goes well," Legolas said grimly and darted a glance at the garden now in deep evening shadow.

She followed his line of sight. "About time, isn't it?"

"It is," he confirmed and slowly rose and rounded the table. She stood and he pulled her close in a tight embrace for a few moments.

She gripped his black shirt and held it in a firm grip when he slowly released her, looking sternly at him. "I don't want to see you come back in a body bag."

He shook his head and smiled at her, caressed her cheek gently. "Love you."

"Love you too."

Backing off he caught her hand and gave it one last squeeze. Then he left.

o.o.o

A loud bang woke up Fili with a jerk, which made him see stars behind his closed eyelids. Boots clomping on the concrete floor announced the arrival of several individuals, and Fili pried his eyes open.

"So the heir has woken up," said a beefy bloke with a shaved head, looking down at him.

Fili sighed and swallowed. "What are you talking about," he rasped and fumbled after the water bottle.

"Thorin's precious nephew, pretending to be all smart and legal."

Fili unscrewed the lid and sipped some water, not wasting energy at sneering at the stereotypical and derogatory attitude. How predictable.

"I bet he could tell us where his pansy little brother is," someone at the back muttered.

"As if I would tell you," Fili sighed and put back the lid on the water bottle, not taking the bait this time either. Kili was safe and whatever these bastards called him didn't matter.

"I think you'd sing very prettily if we applied some screws." The same voice again, gleefully this time.

Fili would have rolled his eyes if it hadn't hurt so much. "I haven't seen him in what, twenty-four hours? More? How would I know where he is now?"

"Oh, we'll find him. After we've done you and your uncle in." Strong hands gripped him and hauled him from the cot and pain exploded through his body, making him cry out.

"Shut your gob!" someone snapped and something hard hit him at the back of his head. Fireworks erupted and there was a ringing noise in his ears drowning out all other sounds. He must have blacked out for a short while, because the next thing he knew he wasn't standing on his feet any more but hanging painfully face down by his arms, being dragged along while a loud quarrel took place around him. He honestly wished he could go back to being unconscious because this was just torture, but it apparently was not to be.

They stopped and he tried to find purchase with his feet, something he, against all odds, succeeded in doing, even if his legs weren't to be trusted. A door opened and cool night air washed over him, clearing his mind slightly. He opened his eyes. Before him was a backyard of some sort with a fence beyond which a hole that was supposed to become a foundation had been dug. It was night and the place was in relative darkness.

He was led out into the night on very unsteady feet but managed to stay upright. Suddenly, strong lights bathed them, most likely the kind that were turned on by movement, he concluded. The brightness in the light flooding the yard forced him to squeeze his eyes shut again. Much to his confusion, loud shouting, odd popping sounds, running, and shoving broke out. Someone yanked him off his feet and then he slammed into the ground. Hard. He should have passed out then and there but for some unfathomable reason he was still conscious, intensely aware of how broken he was. It blocked out everything else around him.

Again he was treated like a rag doll, first kicked and then dragged around by hard hands. Protests against this treatment were beyond him, though. All he could do was retch as nausea made it impossible for him to keep the contents in his stomach down. The world stopped abruptly and he was forced to stand up, but he was unable to control anything in his body – not his legs, nor his head, or even his bowels, though at this point he was beyond caring.

He forced his eyes open but couldn't make out what was going on around him. The sharp light made it utterly impossible to see anything and the pain it caused made him snap them shut again. The sounds were slowly taking on a tinny character and he knew he was about to pass out again. No. A sudden urge to resist reared its head. You'll die if you pass out, his brain told him.

Something was driven into him, in his left side just below the ribcage. He knew more than he felt that someone had inflicted an injury from which he would die. The warmth down his back and hip had to be blood, he concluded. Desperately, he opened his eyes a sliver and tried to speak, but his long–dried-up throat couldn't make any sounds. The person who had been holding him released their grip and he fell for what felt like an eternity. Before he landed he finally lost consciousness.

o.o.o

Tauriel's phone went off, blaring the tune she had set for Legolas, and she snatched it up and accepted the call. Kili blinked to life and moved stiffly in the corner of her eye.

"We fucked up." Legolas voice was unemotional and Tauriel's heart almost stopped when she heard Legolas words. Her eyes snapped to Kili who watched her with a bleary squint. When he saw the look on her face he seemed to slowly turn grey.

"I don't know if Fili will make it. They had beaten him into pulp at some point already and as we went in to retrieve him that bastard head of the White family put a knife in him."

She closed her eyes and swallowed.

"He's being taken to hospital. We're heading back to base."

"Any other injuries?" she asked with an unsteady voice.

"Scrapes and bruises. But Tauriel, you must take Kili and go. He was taken to St George's."

"Good lord, it'll take forty-five minutes at least," she whispered.

"Hurry." The line went dead.

Mechanically she put the phone in her pocket and strode towards the reception room and the stairs to the lower ground floor. "We must go," she called out to Kili, her voice completely detached. She sped down the steps to Dis' apartment. She gave the door a firm knock, then opened it, not waiting for a reply. Scanning the space, she found Dis in a recliner, having raised her eyes from the book in her lap when Tauriel knocked and opened the door.

"Fili is seriously injured. We must leave now," she declared shortly and then went back the way she had come down, not waiting for any reactions or for Dis to follow. Silently she grabbed her jacket and found Dis' car keys. Dis was on her heels, and Kili was at the front door, pushing it open already.

"I hope you don't mind," Tauriel said as she strode through the front door and went down the steps, pressing the button unlocking the car. She looked back at Dis. "But I think this will be faster." She slid into the driver's seat and pushed the key into the ignition. As she pulled out the phone from her pocket and dumped it in the best place she could find for it to be within easy reach, Dis and Kili got into the car. To her surprise Dis chose the back seat.

"Tauriel," Dis said with a steady voice, calling her attention. "Be honest. Is he dead?"

Tauriel adjusted the seat and mirrors and met Dis' gaze in the rear-view mirror. "He was still alive when he was taken to hospital." Dis nodded, understanding the situation.

Tauriel turned the key and put the gear in reverse. She backed the car into the street, in her mind planning the drive south with single-minded focus.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone. So this is the end. Yes it really is! I wrote this little story for fun and I never expected it to be received the way it has, so thank you. It's been a fun ride posting this!

_Epilogue_

The September sun was filtered through a thin layer of clouds but despite this it had a distinct warmth to it. It had rained during the night and the air was noticeably damp, and the scent of autumn was strong.

Tauriel stood a little to the side, studying the different choices of headstones and ornaments, and the various stages of decay to the graves around her. The grass around the plots was a bit too long, making the graves in neglect a sorry sight. She raised her eyes and found Kili in his usual attire, though for the day he had added shades. He was stiff and not at all comfortable in the situation.

"Come on Fee. We're done here now," he said quietly.

Fili sighed. "Don't rush me." Carefully he reached out and put his hand on the headstone. "You'll have to wait a while longer, Dad," he murmured and straightened. He swayed slightly and Kili was immediately at his side, catching his arm. Fili's mouth firmed but he didn't protest as Kili resolutely started to lead him away from the grave. Tauriel fell in with them as they unhurriedly walked towards the entrance where she had parked the car.

"You tell me the moment it's too much, yeah?" Kili asked, glancing at his brother.

"I'm going to do this," Fili returned stubbornly.

"37 has survived thus far without you. Another day or two won't change anything," Tauriel said reassuringly.

"I know. I still want to do this."

Tauriel sent Kili a long look and he frowned in response.

"Stop talking behind my back," Fili sneered.

"I haven't said a word," Kili defended himself.

"Out loud. Bloody hell! You're creeping me out with all that silent communication!"

"A touch paranoid, in my opinion," Tauriel said tartly.

"Tauriel, you know I respect you a great deal-" Fili started but stopped as she cocked an eyebrow at him. Reluctantly he barked a laugh. "There. Exactly what I'm talking about." He turned his head and caught Kili smirking at him. A second later Kili's face had transformed into the picture of innocence.

Fili winced and froze.

"I'm sorry," Kili hurriedly said with eyes wide with concern, and put his hand on Fili's shoulder.

"You'd think having a knife cutting you up would be the worst," Fili breathed and squeezed his eyes shut.

Tauriel reached out and snatched the shades from Kili and put them carefully on Fili. "There's a bench just over here. Sit down for a moment." She ushered the brothers towards the bench and sat down along with them.

Fili sat very still with closed eyes for a long time, while Kili and Tauriel patiently waited. Around them the birds they had disturbed picked up their activities again, flitting in and out thought the bushes. A blackbird was moving about under a rhododendron, tearing around in the mulch under it in the search for something interesting.

A magpie came hopping over the grass towards the rhododendron and the blackbird rushed off while making warning noises. The magpie changed direction, skipped out on the gravel path and then took to the air, landing in a tree above.

"It'll take months," Fili sighed, breaking the silence. "Maybe I'll never be fully recovered. I might be struggling with headaches and memory issues for the rest of my life."

Kili leaned back against the bench and turned away.

"But I can't let that rule my life," he continued with a firm voice.

"If you put too much pressure on yourself recovery may take longer," Tauriel pointed out mildly. "Patience."

Fili sighed unhappily again.

"We're not stopping you from doing things, Fee. We're just taking care of you" Kili turned back to his brother. "You've looked after me all my life. It's time I return some of that care."

"You mean all the times I got us into trouble and you charmed us out of it?" Fili retorted with a smirk. Kili grinned and shrugged lightly.

Tauriel's phone beeped. She retrieved it from her pocket and opened the Facebook chat. "Luka is wondering if something has happened," she said and looked up from the phone with a small smile.

"Why is he asking you?" Fili asked with a scowl.

"Because Tauriel is managing all our lives now," Kili said under his breath in Fili's ear.

"My hearing is excellent, mind you," she said, tapping away on the phone's screen.

Kili snorted. "It's what you do and you do it well." He looked fondly at Fili. "Feeling well enough to continue to the car?"

"I think so."

They rose and resumed walking, keeping it at a leisurely pace.

"Just out of sheer curiosity," Fili said, "what have you all agreed on? I mean, you two and Luka?"

Tauriel pushed her hands down the back pockets of her jeans and aimed her attention at the trees, bushes, and graves they passed by. Fili gave her a short look and then turned to Kili, who seemed to find the gravel path they were walking on particularly interesting.

"Will I get the same reaction from Luka if I ask him?" Fili pressed on.

Kili raised his eyes and squinted at the sun. "Maybe."

Fili looked a bit peeved. "I should mind my own business, right?"

"It's not that. Thorin has not been very gracious about anything. Nothing suits him and he has certainly made his thoughts known. I just don't think anyone else has the right to have opinions on our lives or make demands." Kili briefly looked back at his brother.

"I have an opinion," Fili said breezily. Kili scowled, and Fili laughed, which ended in a coughing groan. He shook his head at Kili's and Tauriel's worried looks. "It's okay. I hear laughing is good for you, even if it's a bit painful right now." He smiled broadly at Kili. "I'm sorry, but I couldn't resist teasing you." He paused for a beat. "They were quite peeved that they couldn't find you though. It saved your arse."

"But you paid for it. I'm sure they took out their frustration on you." Kili's guilt was very obvious.

Fili tried to shrug but ended up wincing. "I'm alive."

"You almost died." Kili glared angrily at the path in front of them.

"Not your fault, Kili," Tauriel cut in. "It was a serious situation, no doubt, but it would have been worse if you had been caught too. I'm quite convinced you would have died, both of you. And most likely some of your relatives too, because it would have been impossible to keep them in check. Fili is right. He lives. You're all alive. That's the most important thing."

She drew a deep breath. "Now we face the delicate work of keeping it that way."

"I take it negotiations with Thorin are not going very well?" Fili asked knowingly.

"He sees any changes in your business agreement, or any other agreements for that matter, as an affront aimed at him personally. The only sensible one is Balin." Tauriel fished up the car keys as Kili pushed the gate open to let them through.

Fili smiled slightly and caught Tauriel's arm. "I think some threats and growling are in order. That's my department." Tauriel made a face. "He is what he is and that won't change any time soon. I'm cutting Kili and myself loose no matter the cost and that's the end of it, even if it needs to be done with some below-the-belt strategy. But that only I can do."

He dropped his hand to his side and did his best to look relaxed and unaffected by his aches and pains as he strolled towards the parked car. "Come on. Luka's nerves are fraying and I want a decent espresso."

Kili reached out and put his arm around Tauriel's shoulders, pulling her close and kissing her on her cheek. Slowly they followed Fili, and Tauriel slipped her hand around Kili's waist, hooking her thumb in his jeans. Nudging her to look at him, Kili grinned and nodded in Fili's direction. Tauriel responded with a raised eyebrow and a slight shrug.

"And stop talking behind my back!" Fili demanded.

"Yessir," Kili mouthed and smiled at Tauriel, who smirked back.


End file.
